Vision Zero
Streetsblog Basics
De Blasio Defends Right-of-Way Law to Dimwits in Albany [Updated]
Update [February 26]: The quote from the mayor has been updated to include his full response.
February 25, 2015
6 Reasons NYC DOT Needs to Get Bolder About Street Redesigns in 2015
With the release of Vision Zero safety plans for every borough last week, NYC DOT should be poised for a great run of street redesigns across the city. DOT knows where the problems are. It has a modern street design toolkit at its disposal and years of data proving that these templates work in New York City. The mandate from City Hall is urgent – eliminate traffic deaths by 2024.
February 25, 2015
Pedestrian Deaths Have Fallen in Every Borough Except Staten Island
DOT released the final installment of its pedestrian safety plans yesterday with a report for Staten Island [PDF], where the nature of pedestrian crashes is different than in the other boroughs.
February 20, 2015
If You Walk in Brooklyn, Chances Are You’ll Cross a Street That Needs Fixing
DOT released its Vision Zero pedestrian safety plan for Brooklyn today. As with analyses issued earlier this week of Queens, Manhattan, and the Bronx, the Brooklyn report [PDF] singles out streets, intersections, and swaths of neighborhoods where motorists make it especially dangerous to walk.
February 19, 2015
Trottenberg: To Reach Vision Zero Goals, DOT Will Need More Resources
After unveiling its pedestrian safety action plan for Queens yesterday, DOT released plans for Manhattan and the Bronx today. (Staten Island will come tomorrow, followed by Brooklyn.) The reports each follow the same pattern, identifying problem areas in depth but describing solutions in general terms. It's clears from the sheer mileage of streets in need of safety improvements that the current pace of change is not nearly enough to achieve the city's Vision Zero goals.
February 18, 2015
DOT Queens Safety Plan Zeroes in on Problems, Light on Specific Fixes
DOT is releasing a Vision Zero pedestrian safety plan for each borough. The first one was unveiled Monday in Jamaica, and a Manhattan event is underway this morning. The Queens report is a detailed analysis of where motorists are doing the most harm, and it provides a general strategy to prioritize street redesigns and traffic enforcement. But it also makes clear that the pace of planned engineering improvements is nowhere near what is needed to achieve the street safety gains sought under the Vision Zero program.
February 18, 2015
Pedestrians With the Right of Way Should Always Have Protection of the Law
Jiahuan Xu, 15, had the walk signal when she started across Grand Street in Williamsburg Friday morning. Before she reached the far side of the street, she was struck by a bus driver turning from Union Avenue and "pinned under the left front wheel," according to the Daily News. After emergency responders rescued Xu, she was taken to Bellevue Hospital and may lose her left leg.
February 16, 2015
Michael DenDekker: Slowing NYC Drivers Is a Pointless Waste
Assembly Member Michael DenDekker, the Queens rep who once proposed legislation to register cyclists and monitor them with bike lane cameras, says efforts to slow city drivers under Vision Zero are pointless. DenDekker wants an audit of Vision Zero spending, which he reportedly believes is wasted unless it's going toward traffic signals to eliminate motorist-pedestrian conflicts at intersections.
February 11, 2015
TLC Bolsters Cab Driver Safety Regs, Minus NYC Road Test Requirement
The Taxi and Limousine Commission voted to revise some of its rules Thursday, strengthening safety requirements for drivers of for-hire vehicles as well as yellow and green cabs. But the TLC still does not require aspiring cabbies to pass a New York City road test before obtaining a hack license.
January 30, 2015
In Brooklyn, Another Alleged Unlicensed Driver Faces Wrist Tap for Killing
An allegedly unlicensed driver who killed a pedestrian in a Brooklyn crosswalk last month was not charged with criminal negligence by NYPD or District Attorney Ken Thompson. Meanwhile, legislation to increase the penalty for causing a death while driving without a valid license continues to languish in Albany.
January 29, 2015