Pedestrian crashes in Greenville, SC

Pedestrian injuries in Greenville County

In Greenville County in 2024, crash reports recorded 141 pedestrians as victims: 22 killed, 28 with suspected serious injuries, 41 with suspected minor injuries, and 45 with possible injuries (SCDPS 2024 Fact Book, Greenville County). Statewide, one pedestrian was killed every 2.3 days in 2024 (same source).

Right-of-way in crosswalks

• Where traffic signals are not in place or not working, a driver must yield, slowing or stopping if needed, to a pedestrian crossing in a crosswalk who is on the driver's half of the road, or approaching so closely from the other half as to be in danger (S.C. Code § 56-5-3130(a)).
• A pedestrian may not suddenly leave a curb and walk or run into the path of a vehicle that is so close it's an immediate hazard (§ 56-5-3130(b)).
• When one vehicle stops at a crosswalk to let a pedestrian cross, drivers approaching from behind may not pass it (§ 56-5-3130(d)). This "second car" situation is a common cause of crosswalk crashes on multi-lane roads.

Crossing outside a crosswalk

South Carolina law puts more duties on pedestrians outside crosswalks (§ 56-5-3150):

• a pedestrian crossing anywhere other than a marked crosswalk, or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, must yield to vehicles;
• between adjacent intersections that both have working signals, pedestrians may cross only in a marked crosswalk;
• diagonal crossing of an intersection is allowed only where traffic-control devices authorize it.

Crossing mid-block doesn't automatically mean a pedestrian has no claim. Fault is decided on all the facts, including the driver's speed, attention and lighting. That allocation is a question for a lawyer.

Walking along a road

• Where a usable sidewalk exists, pedestrians may not walk in the adjacent roadway (§ 56-5-3160(a)).
• Without a sidewalk, walk on the shoulder as far from the roadway edge as practicable. Without a shoulder either, walk as near the outside edge as practicable and, on a two-way road, only on the left side, facing traffic (§ 56-5-3160(b)–(c)).
• Pedestrians are generally prohibited on the main lanes and shoulders of freeways such as interstates, except in emergencies such as a crash or breakdown, or to get help (§ 56-5-3170). If you're hurt after getting out of a disabled car on I-85 or I-385, the emergency exception may be relevant.

What a Wade Hampton Boulevard study found

A January 2024 road safety assessment of US 29 (Wade Hampton Boulevard) between East Lee Road and Watson Road near Taylors, using SCDOT data for 2018–2022, counted nine pedestrian crashes. It identified three pedestrian-related fatal crashes in the Vance Street to Tappan Drive segment, and its recommendations included adding sidewalks on both sides of the road (GPATS US 29 Road Safety Assessment). More corridor data: Greenville crash data.

Who pays when a pedestrian is hit

• The driver's bodily injury liability coverage is usually the first source, with $25,000 per person as the legal minimum (§ 38-77-140).
• If the driver had no insurance or fled, an uninsured motorist claim may be possible under a policy that covers you, such as your own or a household member's car policy, depending on its terms. For unknown drivers, strict conditions apply (§ 38-77-170); see hit-and-run crashes.
• If the driver was working for a rideshare company, see rideshare insurance phases.
• If a road defect or a government vehicle was involved, special notice rules, a two-year deadline and damages caps apply under the S.C. Tort Claims Act (§§ 15-78-110, -120).

Evidence specific to pedestrian crashes

• Lighting and visibility: photograph the scene at the same time of day as the crash, including street lights and whether they work.
• Signals: note whether there was a walk signal or a marked crosswalk, and its exact location relative to where you were hit.
• Clothing and footwear: keep what you were wearing.
• Cameras: businesses and buses along commercial corridors often have cameras. Ask quickly, before footage is overwritten.
• Witnesses and 911: the time of the 911 call and witness names help reconstruct the event.

Deadline

Pedestrian injury claims generally must be filed within three years (§ 15-3-530(5)). Wrongful-death claims also have three years, counted from the date of death (§ 15-3-530(6)). Claims against a government entity generally have two years (§ 15-78-110). See deadlines.

A driver's general duty of due care

Beyond the crosswalk rules, every driver must exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian, give an audible signal when necessary, and exercise proper precaution on seeing any child or any obviously confused, incapacitated or intoxicated person (S.C. Code § 56-5-3230). That duty applies "notwithstanding" local ordinances, so it matters even when a pedestrian was outside a crosswalk.

Scene details that matter in pedestrian cases

• Whether there was a marked crosswalk, and whether signals and walk indicators were working;
• street lighting, and what you were wearing or carrying;
• the nearest signalized intersections, since § 56-5-3150(c) limits crossing between them;
• nearby business and traffic cameras, which usually record over themselves quickly.

Questions to ask a lawyer about a pedestrian crash

1. How will the crosswalk rules and the driver's due-care duty apply to where I was crossing?
2. Whose insurance applies first, and can my own household auto policy help even though I wasn't in a car?
3. Should someone document the lighting and signal timing at the location?
4. If the driver was in a work vehicle or a government vehicle, what changes?