Mayor Adams Announces Traffic Deaths Reach Historic Low During First Quarter of 2025, Additional Work to Be Done to Keep New Yorkers Safe

April 2, 2025

Steep Declines in Fatalities Among Pedestrians, Cyclists, Motorized Two-Wheeler Operators, and Motor Vehicle Occupants Mark Encouraging Start to Year, Underscore Success of Vision Zero Street Safety Efforts

Traffic Injuries Also Declined for All Groups  

NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez today announced that traffic deaths in New York City reached historic lows during the first quarter of 2025. An across-the-board decline in deaths of pedestrians, cyclists, operators of motorized two-wheelers, and motor vehicle occupants underscores the success of “Vision Zero” and the importance of street safety work advanced under the Adams administration. There were 41 traffic deaths during the first three months of 2025 — 24 fewer than last year and the second fewest of any year in recorded history (there were 40 to start 2018). The first quarter of 2025 also saw a sharp decline in injuries among pedestrians, cyclists, motorized two-wheeler operators, and motor vehicle occupants. Despite these achievements, Mayor Adams and the administration continued to recognize that there is more work to do keep all New Yorkers safe on New York City streets, as evidenced by this past weekend’s deadly crash that took the lives of three individuals, including two children, and left a third child fighting for his life in the hospital.  

“In order to make New York City the best place to raise a family, we need to be safer at every level — including on our streets,” said Mayor Adams. “Our administration’s investments in intersection safety improvements, treating traffic violence as the serious crime that it is, and our expanding automated camera enforcement are all helping ensure we’re leading the way toward a safer future for all New Yorkers — whether they are pedestrians, cyclists, or motorists. We understand there is more work to do, as evidenced this past weekend’s tragic crash in Brooklyn because one lift lost to traffic violence is one life too many, but our administration remains committed to reducing traffic violence as much as any other form of violence.”

“Every New Yorker deserves safe streets, and thanks to historic investments in better street designs, expanded educational efforts, and focused traffic enforcement, our streets are safer than ever,” said DOT Commissioner Rodriguez. “Thoughtful street design isn’t just about movement; it’s about making sure everyone gets home safely. That is what inspires DOT’s work each and every day, because one traffic death is one too many.”

First quarter traffic fatality data by year, 2013-2025. Source: NYC DOT 

Traffic deaths declined from 65 during the first quarter of 2024 to 41 during the first quarter of 2025. DOT tracks traffic deaths involving pedestrians, cyclists, operators of motorized two-wheelers, and motor vehicle occupants, all of which saw marked declines in the first quarter of 2025. The data to start 2025 is consistent with longer-term trends that show major progress under Vision Zero. Despite a spike in traffic fatalities during the pandemic, New York City has seen a return to the early successes of Vision Zero initiatives. During the first quarter of 2013 (the year before Vision Zero launched), there were 70 percent more traffic fatalities — a total of 70 fatalities. In 1990, there were 166 traffic fatalities in the first quarter of the year — a 290 percent increase compared to this year.

Traffic injuries also declined during the first quarter of 2025 compared to last year. There were 7,936 traffic injuries through March 12, 2025 – the latest date for which data is available – compared to 9,599 during the same period last year. Declines in injuries are across-the-board, with drops in injuries among pedestrians, cyclists, motorized two-wheeler riders, and motor vehicle occupants.

Over the past three years, the Adams administration has made record investments in street safety that have helped reduce traffic deaths and injuries, including:

• Pedestrian Safety: Over the past three years, the Adams administration created a record 1.5 million square feet of new pedestrian space across the five boroughs. This vastly expanded space has enhanced safety for the most common road users: pedestrians. Last year alone, DOT added another 350,000 square feet of new pedestrian space across New York City, roughly the equivalent of six football fields of new pedestrian space.
• Safer Intersections: Over the past three years, the city implemented a record 5,765 intersection improvements that have bolstered safety. This includes measures to enhance visibility, reduce speeding, cause drivers to turn more slowly, and more. Last year alone, the agency completed upgrades at a record 2,688 intersections.
• Cyclist Safety: Over the past three years, DOT installed an all-time high 87.5 miles of protected bike lane miles and upgraded an additional 20+ miles of bike lanes through “hardening” with physical infrastructure to better protect cyclists from other vehicles. Last year alone, the agency added 3 miles of protected bike lanes, the third most mileage number built in the city’s history, following an all-time record year of 31.9 miles in 2023. The Adams administration’s three-year average for new protected bike lane miles is 29.1 miles per year — a 10 percent increase from the final three years of the previous administration.
• 24/7 Speed Cameras: Because speeding is a factor in more than a quarter of traffic deaths, speed camera enforcement has been central to the success of Vision Zero. Locations with speed cameras have experienced a 94 percent reduction in speeding since the program began a decade ago. In response to increased speeding and traffic deaths during overnight hours, the Adams administration successfully worked with leaders in the New York state Legislature to expand speed cameras to operate 24/7. The expansion to 24/7 coverage has dramatically reduced overnight speeding, the time when speeding can be most dangerous. The speed camera program is set to expire this year unless it is reauthorized by the state Legislature during the current legislative session.  
• Expanding Red Light Cameras: New York City’s red-light camera program has reduced red-light running 73 percent at intersections where they are installed. Prior to last year, the state allowed New York City to have red-light cameras at 150 of its intersections — less than 1 percent of the signalized intersections across the city. Thanks to successful advocacy by the Adams administration, last year, the state Legislature passed, and New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law, legislation to expand their use to 600 intersections, quadrupling the program. This dramatic expansion will improve street safety by cracking down on one of the most dangerous behaviors on the city’s streets.

In addition to the encouraging data from the first quarter of the year, DOT carefully monitors longer, multi-year trends to assess street safety and inform street redesigns and other safety measures. Looking at longer-term trends provides a complete picture that is less susceptible to short-term variability. Following the spike in traffic deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic that peaked in 2021, traffic fatalities in New York City have steadily declined. In 2024, there were 252 traffic fatalities, down 24 from 2021. These declines accelerated in the fall of 2024 and the last 12 months have seen 222 traffic fatalities, which would make it the safest year since 2019.