1910 was just two years after the first Model T was produced by Ford, and cars were quickly taking over the New York City’s streets. It was also the first year NYC began keeping track of traffic deaths. And now, the number of deaths has dipped below that first year.
According to city data released to the Daily News, 131 people were killed in traffic in New York City streets this year, more than a quarter fewer than last year’s number: 177. There’s good reason to believe the dip is at least partially thanks to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s new Vision Zero campaign, which seeks to get the city’s annual death toll down to zero through a laundry list of changes, including ticketing drivers who don’t yield to walkers and lowering the speed limit in the city to 25.
If this year’s data is any indication, the Vision Zero is working. But that doesn’t mean we’re out of the woods yet. There are still major problems on our streets—look no further than the case of a Japanese student who was killed by an NYPD cruiser this year, the investigation of which was seemingly botched and potentially covered up. Meanwhile, traffic deaths amongst cyclists have skyrocketed, and enforcing accountability for negligent drivers is still a major question mark. On the other side of the debate, jaywalking remains rampant, too.
Suffice to say, there’s more work to be done—but these new numbers from de Blasio, while still tragic, are at least moving in the right direction. [Daily News]
AP Photo/Craig Ruttle.
