By Zoe Ligairi
September 30, 2025
GGWash worked with Youthcast Media Group to publish this story. Zoe Ligairi is a senior at Annandale High School, one of Youthcast’s journalism class partners.
Mike Doyle was halfway across the street at the four-way intersection when he heard someone shout, “Look out!” Seconds later, he was sprawled on the ground, bloody and unable to see.
He’d been hit by the driver of a black SUV on his way home from his office in Old Town Alexandria. The force was so great, his forehead dented the front of the car.
The crash that almost killed him, in December 2012, also changed the direction of Doyle’s life. A former investment banker, Doyle has since dedicated himself to identifying dangerous intersections throughout Northern Virginia and advocating for new laws to protect pedestrians — including two state measures that have passed or taken effect within the past year. In 2017, he founded Northern Virginia Families for Safe Streets.
Doyle, now 78, suffered multiple injuries from the crash, including a broken nose, a fractured forehead, bleeding in his skull, and nerve damage in his leg. He had to have multiple surgeries.
And he’s far from alone. Nationally, nearly 9,000 pedestrians and cyclists were killed in car crashes in 2023, while more than 130,000 were injured, according to the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration. In Virginia, from 2017 to 2022, 15% of car crash deaths were pedestrians — that’s 771 people.
Grueling rehab leads to new purpose
After the crash, Doyle experienced temporary paralysis. He also had ongoing headaches and problems with his vision, balance, and concentration as a result of his neurological trauma. He was unsure if he would ever be able to work, walk, or talk again. For three years, Doyle endured grueling rehab and frequent doctors’ visits.
About six months after the crash, Doyle began thinking about what he could do to protect other pedestrians.
“At that point, I had gone through the pity party that one naturally goes through,” Doyle said. He started thinking, “What can we do to make this better for other people? Because it’s a nightmare.”
Doyle learned about a pedestrian safety initiative being adopted in Alexandria called Vision Zero. First implemented in Sweden, Vision Zero is designed around the belief that traffic injuries and deaths are preventable.
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