Greenfield Pushes For 20 MPH Speed Limit On Residential Streets

In an attempt to decrease traffic-related fatalities, Councilman David Greenfield has proposed legislation that would reduce the speed limit on residential streets citywide. According to a press release, Greenfield argued that lowering the speed limits on residential streets would save lives.

Greenfield’s proposed legislation would reduce the speed limit on all residential streets in the five boroughs to 20 mph. At a Council hearing to debate his proposal, Greenfield laid out his case.

“It is clear that we must do much more to make our streets safer for everyone, especially pedestrians. Barely a day goes by without another New Yorker being seriously injured or killed by a speeding or reckless motorist. This is a problem that impacts every community and everyone who walks our streets. One of the simplest things we can do is reduce the speed of drivers traveling through our residential and side streets,”Greenfield said.

Backing up Greenfield was Paul Steely White, executive director of Transportation Alternatives. White expressed his support for Greenfield’s plan and the release cited statistics put out by Transportation Alternatives that point to the seriousness of the issue:

“Traffic deaths are preventable. We know the decisions people make that contribute to fatalities, and we know what actions to take to help people make better decisions. We must decide whether we are willing to take the action necessary to eliminate traffic deaths,” testified White. “We should make 20 miles per hour the default New York City speed limit. This is a reasonable approach to saving lives.”

According to Transportation Alternatives, a drop in average speed of 1 mile per hour on urban, pedestrian-heavy streets leads to a 6 percent decrease in traffic fatalities. That means the implementation of this legislation would save lives every year in New York City, which is home to the most pedestrian-dense streets in the nation. Last year, at least 270 people died in traffic-related incidents across the five boroughs, which was the highest number since 2008. Of those, 148 who died on city streets were pedestrians. During his testimony, White noted that every week last year, 1,262 people were injured, 58 lost a limb or suffered serious life-altering injuries, and five New Yorkers were killed in traffic crashes. Councilman Greenfield’s legislation is especially important given that a person has an 80 percent chance of surviving being hit by a car traveling 30 miles per hour, and a 98 percent chance of survival when hit by a vehicle traveling 20 miles per hour.

Unsafe driving, accidents and traffic fatalities have clearly become a huge issue in recent years so lowering the speed limit on residential roads might go a long way to help save needless injuries and deaths.