In consultation with the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), a CIPA Capstone student researched trends in pedestrian fatalities from 2008-2017 using the Fatality Analysis Reporting System. Research reflected a significant increase in these fatalities and potential factors that may be connected to trends such as an increase in sports utility vehicles, lighting conditions, alcohol & drug use while driving and cell phone usage. The report includes a cross-country comparison of Japan and the United States, and examines factors that led to reversal of pedestrian fatalities trends in Japan. The report finds that Japan initiated a national campaign known as the “traffic war” which included policy changes and funding across several agencies, which may provide guidance to the U.S. policymakers. Additionally, the project outlined and analyzed the components and differences between the U.S. and Japan’s New Car Assessment Program (NCAP). The report finds that the U.S. does not include a pedestrian safety factor as does Japan in their overall score and made recommendations for incorporating this factor. Research also explored new technologies for pedestrian safety and made suggestions for incorporating these features into overall NCAP scores.