Staten Island - Brooklyn Personal Injury Lawyer Michael Kuharski Weighs in on Recent New York City Car Accident Statistics
Staten Island, New York (PRWEB) February 26, 2015 -- As reported by the New York Times (1), traffic fatalities dropped to 248 in 2014 (down from 293 in 2013), but according to the city’s Vision Zero plan (2), each of these deaths were preventable.
The NYPD increased speeding summons by 42 percent and gave out 125 percent more citations for failure to yield to pedestrians throughout 2014 (3). This, coupled with the new 25-mile-per-hour default speed limit throughout NYC, aims to curb traffic-related deaths completely.
“These policies will make our streets safer for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists alike,” said Melissa Mark-Viverito, the City Council speaker. More than a dozen bills designed to make the streets safer went through in May, with the city committing to eliminate traffic deaths by 2024.
Other bills require the Transportation Department to repair missing or broken traffic lights within 24 hours of receiving notice, and still others govern motorcycle riding by prohibiting wheelies, burnouts and even revving.
“With all this legislation, there’s no doubt that the roads are going to be safer. However, that does little for the people who are suffering from injuries due to negligent drivers or the grieving families who lost someone in a traffic accident in Brooklyn or Staten Island,” said Mike Kuharski of Kuharski, Levitz & Giovinazzo, a leading Staten Island - Brooklyn Personal Injury Firm.
Kuharski went on to say, “It’s important to know, though, that these laws will likely be helpful in proving negligence when someone does end up getting hurt. This legislation should bring those tragic numbers down even further, including the numbers of people who are injured.”
Polly Trottenberg, the city’s transportation commissioner, said that the efforts to improve safety are ongoing.
“In 2015, we will continue to work with our Vision Zero partners and local communities to make their neighborhoods safer and save more lives, because our work is far from done,” said Trottenberg.
While this is all good news, the city will still be battling people who are negligent, careless, or simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Learn more about Michael Kuharski and the Staten Island - Brooklyn Personal Injury Firm of Kuharski, Levitz and Giovinazzo at these pages:
http://www.klawnyc.com/staten-island-car-accident-lawyer/
http://www.klawnyc.com/brooklyn-personal-injury-lawyer/
http://www.klawnyc.com/staten-island-personal-injury-lawyer/
References:
(1) New York City’s Pedestrian Fatalities Lowest on Record in 2014, By Emma G. Fitzsimmons, Jan. 1, 2015, URL: nytimes.com/2015/01/02/nyregion/new-york-pedestrian-deaths-are-lowest-on-record.html?_r=0
(2) Vision Zero Action Plan 2014, City of New York, Mayor Bill de Blasio, URL: nyc.gov/html/visionzero/pdf/nyc-vision-zero-action-plan.pdf
(3) EXCLUSIVE: Pedestrian traffic deaths hit record low in New York City, BY Pete Donohue, New York Daily News, Tuesday, December 30, 2014, URL: nydailynews.com/new-york/exclusive-pedestrian-traffic-deaths-hit-record-nyc-article-1.2060325
Tom Desmond, ApricotLaw, http://www.apricotlaw.com, +1 212-960-8584, [email protected]
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