Pedestrian & Bicycle Accidents in Pittsburgh: Your Rights and Next Steps

If you are hit by a vehicle while walking or cycling in Pittsburgh, call 911 immediately or ask a bystander to call. Pedestrian and bicycle crashes almost always involve serious injuries that require emergency medical response. Give the dispatcher your location as precisely as possible — Pittsburgh's confusing street grid and steep hills make this critical. Pittsburgh Bureau of Police responds to crashes within city limits, and Pennsylvania State Police handle incidents on highways and interstates.

Do not leave the scene, and do not let the driver leave. Pennsylvania law (75 Pa.C.S. § 3742) makes leaving the scene of an accident involving injury a felony punishable by up to 7 years in prison and fines up to $15,000. If the driver attempts to flee, note their license plate number, vehicle color, make, model, and direction of travel. Pittsburgh's network of tunnels and bridges creates natural chokepoints with surveillance cameras that help police locate hit-and-run vehicles.

Document everything while you wait for police. Take photos of the intersection, traffic signals, crosswalk markings, bike lanes, the driver's vehicle and license plate, your injuries, your bicycle if applicable, and any debris. Get names and phone numbers of witnesses. Eyewitness testimony is often decisive in pedestrian and bicycle crash cases because the driver's version of events almost always differs from yours.

Pedestrians and cyclists have zero protection in a collision with a motor vehicle. The injuries are almost always more serious than in car-to-car crashes. Common injuries include traumatic brain injuries, broken bones, spinal cord injuries, internal organ damage, road rash, and soft tissue injuries. Many of these injuries are not immediately apparent at the scene because adrenaline masks pain.

Accept emergency medical transport if paramedics recommend it. Pittsburgh has two Level I trauma centers: UPMC Presbyterian in Oakland and Allegheny General Hospital on the North Side. For pediatric injuries, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh is a top-ranked facility. If you decline ambulance transport at the scene, see a doctor within 24 hours. Tell the doctor you were struck by a vehicle and describe every symptom — headaches, dizziness, neck or back pain, numbness, vision changes, difficulty concentrating.

Your medical record is your most important piece of evidence. It establishes the severity of your injuries and links them directly to the crash. Follow all treatment recommendations, attend every follow-up appointment, and keep every medical bill and receipt. Insurance companies look for gaps in treatment to argue your injuries are not as serious as you claim or were caused by something else.

Pennsylvania law is clear: drivers must yield to pedestrians in crosswalks. Under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3542, when a pedestrian is in a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, drivers must yield the right of way. Drivers approaching a crosswalk must slow down and stop if necessary. A driver who hits a pedestrian in a crosswalk is almost always at fault.

Pedestrians also have responsibilities. Under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3543, pedestrians must not suddenly leave a curb or place of safety and walk or run into the path of a vehicle that is so close it is impossible for the driver to yield. Pedestrians crossing outside of a crosswalk must yield to vehicles. However, jaywalking does not automatically bar recovery. Pennsylvania's modified comparative negligence rule (42 Pa.C.S. § 7102) means your damages are reduced by your percentage of fault, and you can still recover if you are 50% or less at fault.

At intersections with traffic signals, pedestrians must obey walk and don't walk signals (75 Pa.C.S. § 3112). Even when a pedestrian crosses against a signal, the driver still has a duty to exercise due care to avoid hitting them. A driver who sees a pedestrian in the road and makes no effort to stop or slow down may be found predominantly at fault despite the pedestrian's violation.

Pennsylvania law treats bicycles as vehicles. Under 75 Pa.C.S. § 3501, cyclists have the same rights and are subject to the same traffic rules as motor vehicle drivers. Cyclists can ride on any road except limited-access highways, must obey traffic signals and signs, and must signal turns. Cyclists must ride as near to the right side of the roadway as practicable, except when passing, turning left, avoiding hazards, or when the lane is too narrow to share safely.

Drivers must give cyclists at least 4 feet of clearance when passing. Pennsylvania's 4-foot passing law (75 Pa.C.S. § 3303) is among the most protective in the country. A driver who clips a cyclist while passing too closely is at fault. Drivers must also check for cyclists before opening car doors — dooring accidents are a leading cause of cycling injuries in Pittsburgh's dense neighborhoods like Lawrenceville, the South Side, and Shadyside.

Pennsylvania requires helmets only for cyclists under age 12 (75 Pa.C.S. § 3510). The statute explicitly prohibits using the absence of a helmet as evidence of contributory negligence. Not wearing a helmet cannot reduce your legal right to compensation. Cyclists must use a front white light visible from at least 500 feet and a rear red reflector visible from at least 500 feet when riding between sunset and sunrise (75 Pa.C.S. § 3507).

When a driver hits a pedestrian or cyclist, the driver's bodily injury liability insurance pays for your medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other damages. Pennsylvania requires all drivers to carry minimum liability coverage of $15,000 per person and $30,000 per accident for bodily injury (75 Pa.C.S. § 1786). Many drivers carry higher limits. You file a claim against the at-fault driver's insurance policy.

Your full tort vs. limited tort election matters. Pennsylvania is one of the few states with a tort option choice on auto insurance. If you chose limited tort, your ability to sue for pain and suffering is restricted unless your injuries qualify as a "serious injury" — defined as death, serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement (75 Pa.C.S. § 1705). Full tort policyholders face no such restriction. However, when you are injured as a pedestrian or cyclist and you do not have auto insurance, the limited tort restriction generally does not apply to you.

If the driver is uninsured or underinsured, your own uninsured/underinsured motorist (UM/UIM) coverage may apply even though you were not in a vehicle at the time. Pennsylvania courts have held that UM/UIM coverage can extend to policyholders injured as pedestrians or cyclists. Pennsylvania law requires insurers to offer UM/UIM coverage, and you can only lack it if you signed a written rejection. About 7-8% of Pennsylvania drivers are uninsured, according to the Insurance Research Council — lower than the national average but still a meaningful risk.

Pennsylvania's statute of limitations for personal injury claims is 2 years from the date of injury (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524). For wrongful death claims, the deadline is also 2 years from the date of death (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524). These deadlines are firm — miss them and you lose the right to file a lawsuit. Do not assume you have unlimited time to act, especially if you are focused on medical recovery.

Report the accident to your own insurance company within days, even if you were a pedestrian or cyclist and the other driver was at fault. If you have UM/UIM or Medical Payments (MedPay) coverage, you need to file under your own policy as well. Delayed notice can give your insurer grounds to deny coverage. Keep a file with the police report, medical records, photos, witness contact information, and all correspondence with insurance companies.

Want to understand your options after being hit by a car in Pittsburgh? Get your free Injury Claim Check. You will answer a few questions about your accident, injuries, and circumstances. We will provide a personalized report covering your legal rights, potential claim value, and next steps — and connect you with a Pittsburgh-area attorney experienced in pedestrian and bicycle accident cases. The Injury Claim Check is free, confidential, and takes less time than a phone call with an insurance adjuster.