Vision Zero: New graphic billboards across NYC will urge drivers to slow down

ByEyewitness News WABC logo

Monday, May 2, 2022

Graphic billboards going up across NYC to urge drivers to slow down

Graphic billboards are going up about road safety and the dangers of speeding in New York City's most dangerous neighborhoods for pedestrians.

EAST NEW YORK, Brooklyn (WABC) -- New Yorkers will be soon see graphic billboards about road safety and the dangers of speeding in the city's most dangerous neighborhoods for pedestrians.

Mayor Eric Adams and Department of Transportation Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez launched a $4 million multi-platform, multilingual campaign Monday to counter rising traffic violence and curb dangerous driving behaviors that have occurred at higher rates since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It's part of New York City's ongoing Vision Zero campaign and warns drivers that "Speeding ruins lives. Slow down."

"Traffic safety is public safety, and today we are continuing to take action against traffic violence," Adams said. "This unprecedented campaign will reach New Yorkers across the five boroughs in nine languages with one message: Slow down. And we are going to do all we can to focus on the ultimate goal of Vision Zero and eliminate traffic fatalities."

The eye catching safety campaign is being unveiled in East New York, Brooklyn, but will also target areas include Bushwick and Canarsie in Brooklyn, Jamaica in Queens, Harlem and Washington Heights in Manhattan, and Hunts Point in the South Bronx.

The plan includes 18 highway billboards and posters on buses and gas stations across the city.

"Over the next two months, New Yorkers will see for themselves the horrible aftermath of driving too fast," Rodriguez said. "This campaign will be unprecedented in the extent of its outreach: It will be in more communities, cover more community and ethnic media, and speak to New Yorkers in nine different languages. We thank the mayor for his support and leadership as we use all the tools in the toolbox to fight this traffic violence crisis."

It is the city's latest attempt to curb the increasing rate of pedestrian deaths around the city.

Officials say 64 pedestrians have been killed this year through April 26, compared to 61 for the same period last year.

As part of Mayor Eric Adams' $904 million investment in the Streets Master Plan, crews will be implementing hundreds of similar projects across the five boroughs this year, including: safer pedestrian crossings, pedestrian islands, dedicated turn lanes and raised crosswalks.

The NYPD continues to increase its enforcement of speeding and reckless driving in areas where fatalities are occurring.

In the 28-day period ending April 24, 2022, the NYPD issued 47.4% more summonses for all hazardous conditions on New York City's roads than in the same period in 2021.

The NYPD also issued 54.6% more summonses in that period than in the same period last year, including a 322% increase in East New York's 75th Precinct.

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