Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced alongside the DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan that the City’s Neighborhood Slow Zones would be expanded—increasing the areas where the speed limit is dropped in order to prevent accidents and increase safety.

According to a press release from the city of New York, the Slow Zone program reduces speed limits from 30 miles per hour to 20 miles per hour in targeted residential areas. This, they say, has played a role in decreasing the number of fatal accidents in the city, and they hope an expansion can bring even further reductions.

In 2011, traffic fatalities in the city were at the lowest levels ever in recorded history. That is significant. The last four years have been the safest overall in regards to accidents.

The zones targeted for the Slow Zone program were identified by citizens themselves. They were requested by residents and then were evaluated for “crash history, community support, proximity of schools, senior centers, and daycare centers,” according to the city’s press release. Now those areas are in the design and approval process before the speed limit changes will be made official. Continue reading →