Is Vision Zero working?

Posted December 1, 2015 By Masako Melissa Hirsch

WNYC uses data on traffic fatalities collected this year by The New York World to examine the city program’s success.

Traffic fatalities dropped by 11 percent over the last 12 months, a New York World/WNYC analysis found. Over the past year the NYW/WNYC team has tracked and recorded every traffic fatality across the five boroughs – 224 in total as of Dec. 1. In 2014, there were 252 fatalities during the same time period.

The decline in fatalities comes nearly two years after Mayor Bill de Blasio unveiled a plan, coined “Vision Zero.” The plan intends to end all traffic deaths and injuries by increasing enforcement and improving street engineering.

“If that downward trend continues, it would seem to endorse Mayor Bill de Blasio’s approach to street safety, which aims to entirely eliminate all traffic fatalities,” WNYC reported.

Traffic deaths are down in four of the five boroughs except in Staten Island, which had a sharp increase from 11 to 23. The city is looking to see what it can do to reduce that number, reporter Kate Hinds said.

In contrast to the city, preliminary national data showed an 8 percent increase in traffic fatalities in the first six months of the year.

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<h1>Is Vision Zero working?</h1><p>WNYC uses data on traffic fatalities collected this year by The New York World to examine the city program’s success.</p>
<p><iframe src="https://www.wnyc.org/widgets/ondemand_player/wnyc/#file=/audio/json/555671/&share=1" width="100%" height="130" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></p>
<p>Traffic fatalities dropped by 11 percent over the last 12 months, a New York World/WNYC analysis found. Over the past year the NYW/WNYC team has tracked and recorded every traffic fatality across the five boroughs – 224 in total as of Dec. 1. In 2014, there were 252 fatalities during the same time period.</p>
<p>The decline in fatalities comes nearly two years after Mayor Bill de Blasio unveiled a plan, coined “Vision Zero.” The plan intends to end all traffic deaths and injuries by increasing enforcement and improving street engineering.</p>
<p>“If that downward trend continues, it would seem to endorse Mayor Bill de Blasio’s <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.nyc.gov/html/visionzero/pages/home/home.shtml');"  href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/visionzero/pages/home/home.shtml">approach to street safety</a>, which aims to entirely eliminate all traffic fatalities,” WNYC <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.wnyc.org/story/vision-zero-working/');"  href="http://www.wnyc.org/story/vision-zero-working/">reported</a>.</p>
<p>Traffic deaths are down in four of the five boroughs except in Staten Island, which had a sharp increase from 11 to 23. The city is looking to see what it can do to reduce that number, reporter Kate Hinds said.</p>
<p>In contrast to the city, <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812217.pdf');"  href="http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812217.pdf">preliminary national data</a> showed an 8 percent increase in traffic fatalities in the first six months of the year.</p>

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