WILMINGTON — The Wilmington Police Department launched their campaign to thwart jaywalking recently. The initiative began just prior to the arrival of the new Police Chief Ryan Zuidema and has been running for the past two months.
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In that timeframe, police have written around 70 warnings and issued 40 citations. Fines for jaywalking can be about $100, but the amounts are decided in accordance with North Carolina law (G.S. 20-174) and per the courts, according to WPD spokesperson Lt. Greg Willet.
The most recent update to this law, in effect since December 2024, made multiple violations of “standing, sitting or lying upon highways or streets,” particularly while participating in a demonstration, a Class A1 misdemeanor for a first offense and a Class H felony for a second or subsequent offense, if found guilty.
The initiative is part of an effort to reduce pedestrian fatalities. Wilmington averages about 72 to 75 pedestrian accidents per year, though the most recent data from 2023 shows 45 pedestrian accidents. The average fatalities per year is 3.
In Wilmington, Market Street and College Road have been designated the most dangerous roads in the city, based on pedestrian accidents alone.
Just a few days ago, on Oct. 5, just after 1 a.m., a 61 year-old was struck by a vehicle on North College Road and passed away. On Market Street and Forest Hills Drive in July, a 39 year-old woman was struck and killed by a vehicle at 7:30 in the morning. In January, another pedestrian was struck at 6:30 p.m. on South College Road.
The Wilmington Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Go Coast program ranks the greater Wilmington area among the most dangerous regions to walk and bike statewide. There were more than 62,000 total crashes in Wilmington between 2017 and 2024. WHQR reports in 2024, there were six pedestrian fatalities by a vehicle.
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