Macon-Bibb safety summit focuses on preventing pedestrian deaths

Safety leaders, advocates and residents discussed roadway improvements, personal responsibility and efforts to reduce pedestrian fatalities.

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) — Macon-Bibb County safety leaders focused on preventing pedestrian crashes and deaths Thursday during the 2026 Pedestrian Safety Review Board Safety Summit.

The summit was held in recognition of National Pedestrian Safety Month. Community leaders, safety advocates and residents discussed pedestrian and roadway safety and ways to prevent crashes and fatalities.

Attendees also learned about ongoing safety efforts and technologies being considered to improve roadway safety.

Charise Stephens-Merriweather, vice chair of the Pedestrian Safety Review Board, said the summit is also a time to remember people who have lost their lives in pedestrian incidents, including a PSRB board member and an elementary school student.

Stephens-Merriweather said preventing pedestrian deaths requires everyone who uses the road to take responsibility.

“I’m emotional today because these are preventable,” she said. “We can slow down. We can care for each other. Even for pedestrians, we can use the crosswalks. All of us have responsibility so we can get to our destination as safe as possible.”

Stephens-Merriweather said infrastructure improvements are part of the solution, but everyone has a role in keeping others safe.

More than a dozen pedestrians have died in Macon-Bibb County this year.