In New York City, traffic deaths have reached their highest peak in eight years. Many of these fatalities have been linked to speeding-related
incidents, and New York City officials are trying to figure out how to address growing concerns around road safety
and get drivers to slow down. A $4 million investment in an ad campaign designed to promote safer driving is the city’s latest attempt to decrease deaths.
Vision Zero is initiative tasked with curbing this trend. First launched in 2014, Vision Zero was a citywide initiative to reduce preventable traffic deaths and injuries to zero, and the city has made big strides. According to nyc.gov
, traffic fatalities have already fallen significantly from 701 in 1990, to an all-time low of 202 in 2018, but the recent rise in deaths show that there is still some work to be done. What is Vision Zero doing to decrease traffic deaths in NYC?
The New York Times
reported that Mayor Eric Adams pledged to expand on Vision Zero efforts, including a $904 million investment in the city’s streets plan which will include redesigning dangerous intersections and adding more bike lanes. The most recent initiative to mitigate traffic fatalities comes in the form of a $4 million billboard and media campaign targeted at reckless drivers. The billboards—which depict scenarios like a pedestrian being thrown into the air after colliding with a speeding car—will run for eight weeks in addition to television spots, print and social media advertisements, posters on public buses and at gas station pumps, and physical postcards, brochures and fliers.
Empty roads emboldened drivers
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, there’s been an uptick in speeding and reckless driving, with a few theories as to why. While many office spaces and businesses were shut down or offering limited services, there were less drivers on the roads overall, and those that were driving took advantage of the empty roads to drive above the speed limit.
Many New Yorkers also bought cars or opted to drive during the pandemic, as driving seemed like the safer alternative to taking public transportation or air travel.
Americans are also buying bigger cars than ever. Sedan sales have been declining since 2014, and Americans are buying more trucks and SUVs than any other country. According to HotCars.com
, pick-up trucks and SUVs make up 70% of the auto market, and consumers are taking out bigger loans
to drive bigger cars. While there is some data to support that bigger cars are generally safer than smaller cars
, they’re also more likely to be involved in accidents as it's harder to avoid a crash while driving a larger vehicle. Will a billboard campaign be enough to make people drive safer?
The 18 high-profile billboards will be placed along roads and highways with high incidents of traffic accidents, but some transportation advocates argue that simply encouraging people to drive more safely will not be effective.
“I think it takes a long time to change a culture of driving in the same way it took a long way to change a culture of smoking,” said Erick Guerra, an associate professor of city and regional planning at the University of Pennsylvania as reported by the New York Times.
Other advocates suggest that more permanent changes be made to redesign streets and make roads safer if the city wants to see a real impact in road safety.
Safe driving means better car insurance rates
Car insurance
companies calculate costs based on risk potential, and the better your driving record is, the more you can save on car insurance. Getting somewhere a few minutes faster is never worth a potential injury or fatality, and driving safer will save you more in the long run. To ensure you always have the lowest rate, sign up with Jerry
. Jerry helps users gather and compare quotes sourced from 55+ top providers like Progressive, Allstate, and Nationwide for free. Just download the app, answer a few questions, and review the list of competitive quotes Jerry sends straight to your phone.
When you find a quote you like, Jerry can help you switch plans and even help cancel your old policy—no paperwork, phone calls, or headaches required! Users save an average of over $800 a year on car insurance with Jerry—and it only takes a minute to sign up.
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