Raleigh police search for driver in southeast hit-and-run crash

Raleigh police were searching for the driver who struck a woman and drove away near Carolina Pines Avenue and Steel Street in southeast Raleigh, leaving her with non-life-threatening injuries. Officers responded at about 3:36 a.m. Friday to the pedestrian crash in a residential part of Wake County where the vehicle was gone by the time police arrived.

Investigators said the woman was walking when a car hit her and left the scene. She was taken to the hospital, and she was expected to be OK. Police have not identified the vehicle, and the case remains under investigation as detectives look for anyone who saw the crash or can help trace the driver.

The timing made the crash especially difficult to investigate. A pre-dawn hit-and-run leaves fewer witnesses on the street, and darkness can make it harder to identify a car, track its direction of travel or capture a useful description before traffic patterns change. For Raleigh police, that makes public tips and nearby video especially important in the hours after a crash like this one.

The southeast Raleigh crash also fits a broader safety problem across the city. Recent local coverage has included a fatal hit-and-run near New Bern Avenue and another pedestrian injury crash on South Saunders Street, underscoring that Raleigh’s busy corridors and neighborhood connectors remain vulnerable spots for people on foot. The North Carolina Department of Transportation maintains crash data and pedestrian safety resources, while the City of Raleigh keeps crash records that go back to 2015, data that can help show whether Carolina Pines Avenue has seen repeated collisions or other trouble points over time.

Statewide, the Governors Highway Safety Association said drivers struck and killed 7,148 pedestrians in 2024, a 4.3% drop from 2023 but still above pre-pandemic levels. That larger pattern gives added weight to a crash like the one on Carolina Pines Avenue, where the immediate question is not just how the woman is recovering, but who was behind the wheel and whether police can find that person before the trail goes cold.