New York City Traffic Fatalities Reach Historic Low
As traffic fatalities rise across the country, traffic-related deaths in New York City fell to a 30-year low.
For the fiscal year of 2017, which ended on June 30, there were 210 traffic fatalities, down from 241 deaths the previous year.
In the first six months of this calendar year, the city saw 93 fatalities, the lowest number since record-keeping began.
“It the first time we've even been under 100,” said Department of transportation commissioner Polly Trottenberg. “It’s the first period ever since 1910 where we’ve had fewer than a 100 roadway fatalities in the first six months of the year.”
Queens, Manhattan and Staten Island were the boroughs that saw the biggest drops in traffic fatalities. Pedestrians, motorists and cyclists deaths were all lower than the previous year; motorcycle deaths increased by one.
A decrease in traffic deaths in New York City goes against the national trend. The National Safety Council estimates an increase traffic fatalities across the country this year, in part because cheaper gas is prompting people to drive more.
Mayor de Blasio released a plan 2014 to reduce the number of traffic injuries, which then stood at more than 4,000, and fatalities, which then numbered 250. The Vision Zero initiative focuses on improving education for both pedestrians and drivers, enhancing traffic enforcement, and redesigning dangerous intersections to improve safety.
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