Kevin D. Croshaw died when his motorcycle slammed into a truck on U.S. Highway 89 in Cache County.

Six-year-old Jedediah Murray was riding his bike in a Huntington intersection when a pickup truck ran over him.

The three are among 61 pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcycle riders killed in crashes in 2006, a year in which such fatalities increased by a third.

Motorcycle fatalities rose from 23 in 2005 to 25 last year. Pedestrian deaths climbed from 20 to 27, while bicycle fatalities jumped threefold, from three to nine, according to the Utah Department of Transportation.

In all, 15 more people died last year than the year before in accidents involving bikes, motorcycles and pedestrians.

"I wish I knew [even more] about bike safety and how to change these statistics," said Utah Bicycle Coalition President Malcolm Campbell.

Utah Highway Patrol Col. Lance Davenport said it's hard to pinpoint the reason for the upward swing in fatalities, except to note that the number of motorists on Utah roads continues to increase each year. He believes this is also true for bicyclists and motorcyclists.

"There's been an increase [in recent years] in young male adults driving motorcycles," Davenport said.

UHP data shows that there were 11 motorcycle fatalities in 1995. That number has fluctuated for more than a decade, but has mainly increased, hitting a high of 29 in 2004.

Most of the deaths could have been avoided.

According to UHP, the leading cause of fatal motorcycle crashes involved riders driving too fast and too close to the vehicle in front of them. Other types of improper driving came second.

Utah Department of Health data shows that an average of six bicyclists died each year in Utah from 1998 to 2006.

"When we had three [in 2005], that was an unusually low year," Campbell said.

But the low numbers in 2005 don't much matter to Salt Lake City resident Patty Brasher.

Her husband, Steve Williams, died Sept. 16 of that year when he was struck from behind by a car and crushed to death while riding along State Road 14 in northeast Kane County.

"He hit the windshield and the gentleman hit him again and drug him 180 feet," Brasher said. "Then Steve rolled off and [the driver] drove another quarter of a mile before he stopped."

Brasher said the 79-year-old driver and her husband were the only vehicles on the two-lane road. The collision could have been avoided, she said, if the driver would have only switched lanes.

A bright spot in the statistics is that pedestrian deaths have decreased in seven of the last nine years, despite the spike in 2006.

jbergreen@sltrib.com

Pedestrians:

* Stop and look before stepping into a road, even at crosswalks.

* Make eye contact with driver before crossing in front of a car.

* Watch for vehicles making turns.

* Use sidewalks. If no sidewalk exists, walk on the side of road against traffic.

* At night, wear reflective clothing or carry a flashlight.

Bicyclists:

* Obey traffic signals, signs and lane markings.

* Ride with the flow of traffic on the right side of the road.

* Ride in a straight line.

* Use hand signals to let others on the road know where you plan to go.

* Wear a helmet.

Motorcyclists:

* Observe the speed limit.

* Wear a helmet, eye protection, gloves and other protective clothing.

* Drive with headlight on.

* Keep tires, turn signals, mirrors and brakes in good adjustment and working order.

* Take a rider safety course to learn defensive riding techniques.

Source: Utah Department of Health, Motorcycle Safety Foundation