Today in New York, approximately 4,000 New Yorkers are seriously injured and more than 250 are killed each year in traffic crashes. Being struck by a vehicle is the leading cause of injury-related death for children under 14, and the second leading cause for seniors. On average, vehicles seriously injure or kill a New Yorker every two hours.
We agree with the City of New York that this status quo is unacceptable. We cannot regard traffic crashes as mere “accidents,” but rather as preventable situations that can be properly addressed. No level of fatality on city streets is inevitable or tolerable.
The recently introduced Vision Zero Action Plan in New York City is the foundation for ending traffic deaths and injuries on our streets. Under this plan, the city is making an active commitment to making city streets safer for drivers and pedestrians in every borough. The plan includes expanded enforcement against dangerous moving violations like speeding and failing to yield to pedestrians, new street designs and configurations to improve safety, widespread public outreach and communications, and an intense legislative agenda to increase penalties for dangerous drivers and give New York City control over the safety of city streets.
Vision Zero began in Sweden in 1997 and aimed to achieve a highway system with no fatalities or serious injuries in road traffic. A core principle of the vision is that ‘Life and health can never be exchanged for other benefits within the society’ rather than the more conventional comparison between costs and benefits, where a monetary value is placed on life and health, and then that value is used to decide how much money to spend on a road network towards the benefit of decreasing how much risk. Sweden’s fatality reduction of 39% between 2000 and 2009 was a great achievement, and other countires who followed suit, such as Switzerland (41%), Germany (45%), France (48%) and Spain (53%), saw extremely promising results as well.
At the Law Office of Richard M. Kenny, our attorneys have a combined century of experience dealing with automobile accidents right here on our city streets. We have seen the perilous injuries that result from speeding and work to resolve cases that benefit not only our clients but the city as a whole. The Vision Zero plan will hopefully reduce the fatalities and injuries our drivers and pedestrians see in New York City. If you or a loved one was injured in a car or speeding accident, call our office today to figure out what you can do to obtain the results you need and deserve.
