New statistics by the Department of Transportation show that New York City is one of the safest areas in the country, with traffic accident fatalities here having dropped to their lowest levels for the past two years. Yet, Last year, the city recorded a small increase over the previous year.
In 2009, traffic fatalities in New York City had reached record lows. In 2010, there were 259 traffic accident fatalities, an increase of 5% over 2009. Fatalities in motorcycle accidents accounted for approximately 14% of the total traffic accident fatalities in New York City in 2010, in spite of the fact that motorcycles only comprise 2% of the city’s registered vehicles.
However, traffic accident fatality rates in NYC continue to remain one of the lowest in the country, at about a quarter of the national rate. In 2008, New York streets were safer than those in several other large American cities, including Dallas, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Much of the credit should go to city transportation officials, especially Transportation Commissioner Janet Sadik-Khan.According to Ms. Khan, the trick is to stop thinking of traffic accidents as “accidents” since these are almost always so avoidable. Under the new transportation Commissioner, there has been a great emphasis on encouraging pedestrians, thereby reducing street congestion and accidents, as well as an overhaul of traffic signals and advertising campaigns against speeding.
However, in spite of these advances in traffic safety, New York car accident lawyers still find that NYC is a dangerous city compared to some of the other major global cities. For instance, we still have a long way to go before motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists in New York City are as safe as those in London, Stockholm, and even congested Tokyo. Some areas, including the Manhattan approach to the Queensboro Bridge and Brooklyn’s OceanAvenue, are fatal accident magnets.