Vision Zero

Yesterday NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton said that in 73 percent of crashes in which a pedestrian was struck by a motorist in 2013, the pedestrian was at fault. Bratton presented that figure as an indictment of pedestrian behavior, and the stat was later parroted by the press. But more than anything it speaks to the victim-blaming bias that permeates NYPD traffic enforcement and crash investigations -- a major obstacle Bratton will have to overcome to implement Vision Zero.

In 2013, NYC recorded a record-low 333 homicides, yet at least 286 people lost their lives to traffic violence. At a press conference yesterday, Mayor Bill de Blasio said it's "shocking to see how much those two numbers correspond."

Calling traffic fatalities an "epidemic" that deserves immediate attention from the city, Mayor Bill de Blasio launched his administration's "Vision Zero" agenda this afternoon, setting out to eliminate traffic deaths within a decade. The most important news to come out of today's announcement is that his administration will enlist multiple agencies to tackle the multifaceted problem of traffic violence. A working group led by the city's police, transportation, health, and taxi commissioners is tasked with coming up with an action plan by February 15.

Mayor de Blasio is at PS 152 in Queens this afternoon with Police Commissioner Bill Bratton and Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg to discuss the administration's initiatives to sharply reduce traffic deaths and injuries. We'll have a full report later today, but here's what reporter Stephen Miller has broadcast on Twitter so far...

At a press conference this afternoon for the ceremonial swearing in of Bill Bratton as police commissioner, Mayor Bill de Blasio took the microphone to express his administration's commitment to its Vision Zero goal of eliminating traffic fatalities within ten years. Bratton followed up with more remarks about how the department will prioritize street safety, saying NYPD will have an "intensive focus on traffic issues."

A group of street safety advocates braved the cold yesterday outside Mayor Bill de Blasio's inauguration and received an impromptu visit from Polly Trottenberg, de Blasio's pick for transportation commissioner.

Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio has selected Bill Bratton to serve as New York City's next police commissioner. Bratton occupied the same post from 1994 to 1996 under the Giuliani administration and is credited with pioneering data-driven policing techniques. After Bratton left, one of the innovations his deputies introduced was TrafficStat, a system that tracked crash data, held precinct commanders accountable for street safety performance, and brought different agencies together to address problems.

Last night, nearly 200 neighborhood residents gathered for over two hours in the Park Slope United Methodist Church for the launch of the Park Slope Street Safety Partnership, a consortium of civic groups, elected officials, and private citizens created to advance traffic calming efforts in the neighborhood.

WNYC has put together a map showing that the majority of streets in New York City are close to a school -- meaning that, according to state law, the speed limit on those streets can be lowered to 20 miles per hour without Albany's approval: