Plan outlines more than 100 policy commitments to prevent deaths and serious injuries, including redesigning the city’s most dangerous, untreated streets and new legal tools to hold dangerous drivers accountable
Traffic deaths are down 30% since before Vision Zero launched in 2014
Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani today released Vision Zero Reimagined, a 10-year blueprint for street safety. The comprehensive, citywide plan brings together 19 City agencies, Mayoral offices and partners to advance more than 100 policies designed to prevent traffic deaths and serious injuries while unlocking the full potential of New York City’s streets as public spaces.
Vision Zero Reimagined pairs bold ideas with practical fixes, including developing the city’s first pedestrian-only and pedestrian-priority districts, expanding implementation of Sammy’s Law, installing hardened daylighting or better treatments at 1,000 intersections each year, dramatically expanding street safety projects and pursuing new legal tools to crack down on dangerous drivers who are responsible for a disproportionate share of traffic deaths and serious injuries.
“We should not have to wait for another family to lose a loved one before we make a street safer. We are committed to building safe streets before tragedy — not because of it. Vision Zero Reimagined puts forward the bold measures and practical fixes we need to make preventable tragedy no longer a part of everyday life in New York City,” said Mayor Mamdani. “With 19 agencies and partners working together, we are doubling down on what works and paving the way for ambitious new models of street safety. Safety is a right for every New Yorker, no matter how you travel, where you are going or what neighborhood you call home.”
Eight strategic goals guide the City’s next phase of Vision Zero:
Goal 1: Remove dangerous drivers from our streets.
A small number of drivers with documented histories of reckless behavior account for 37% of all traffic deaths. Drivers who repeatedly speed or run red lights are far more likely to cause severe injury crashes. Vehicles that receive more than 16 speed camera violations in a year are twice as likely to be involved in a crash that causes severe injury or death. 41% of all traffic fatalities involve a driver without a valid license, with a prior suspension or with multiple convictions.
The City will focus on removing these drivers from the streets by strengthening legal accountability and using data-driven automated enforcement to identify people who routinely violate traffic laws. This includes closing enforcement gaps created by “ghost plates,” raising standards for maintaining and restoring driver licenses and launching New York City’s first Super Speeder program — enabled by changes to State law secured by Governor Hochul in this year’s State budget and championed by State Senator Andrew Gounardes and Assembly Member Emily Gallagher.
Goal 2: Promote safe, certified micromobility while curbing dangerous devices and riding behavior.
E-micromobility is essential to reducing car dependence, cutting emissions and expanding affordable transportation options across New York City — especially for delivery workers. But its growth must be safe and well-regulated.
The City will create a clear and enforceable safety framework that holds delivery platforms accountable for unsafe practices, expands bike and e-scooter share with built-in safety training, aligns e-bike rules with national and international standards and removes illegal or uncertified devices from City streets.
Goal 3: Encourage safer travel through walking, transit, micromobility and car share over private automobile use.
Automobile travel remains the most dangerous mode of transportation in the United States, and crashes involving cars account for nearly 90% of traffic fatalities in New York City, most often harming pedestrians, cyclists and other vulnerable road users.
The City will continue shifting travel away from private automobiles by making safer options — walking, transit, micromobility and shared vehicles — more affordable, reliable and convenient. This includes building a faster, more accessible bus system, expanding protected and low-stress cycling networks and lowering the cost and increasing the accessibility of bike and e-scooter share.
Goal 4: Discourage oversized vehicles and prepare for new vehicle technologies.
Larger and heavier vehicles pose growing risks on New York City streets, accounting for a disproportionate share of pedestrian fatalities while increasing crash severity, congestion and pressure on limited curb space.
To protect street users and keep pace with rapidly changing vehicle technology, the City will advocate for stronger federal vehicle safety standards that prioritize pedestrian and cyclist safety, promote safer truck designs and advocate for local oversight over any future deployment of autonomous vehicles.
At the same time, the City will shift freight to safer and more sustainable modes such as cargo bikes, rail and waterborne transport while encouraging smaller, safer vehicles better suited to New York City’s streets.
Goal 5: Expand and maintain safety-focused street designs.
Street design remains one of the City’s most powerful tools for preventing crashes and saving lives. Decades of targeted redesigns have shown that safer streets work.
Building on this success, the City will expand proven safety interventions such as pedestrian-priority zones, protected bicycle networks, traffic-calmed corridors and safer intersections while modernizing designs to reflect changing travel patterns and the needs of street users.
The City will complete safety redesigns on untreated Vision Zero Priority Corridors — our city’s most dangerous streets — over the next three years, install hardened daylighting or better treatments at a minimum of 1,000 intersections each year and expand implementation of Sammy’s Law.
Goal 6: Cultivate a safety culture through education, enforcement and shared responsibility.
To reduce injuries and fatalities where risk is highest, the City will strengthen accountability through consistent and equitable enforcement. This includes expanding automated enforcement, ensuring vehicles are properly registered and identifiable and closing loopholes that enable license plate fraud and unsafe commercial operations.
Safe behavior will be reinforced through sustained education, including integrating Vision.
Zero into public school curricula, expanding outreach to older adults and updating operator training to reflect current street conditions.
Goal 7: Leverage emerging data, technology and analysis for smarter interventions.
Data-driven research has been central to Vision Zero’s success, allowing the City to focus limited resources on interventions that save the most lives.
Building on this foundation, the City will create a unified Vision Zero data warehouse and use emerging technologies and analysis to better understand how people move around the city, identify crash circumstances and uncover safety patterns that can guide future interventions.
Goal 8: Lead by example with the safest municipal fleet in the nation.
As one of the largest fleet operators in the country, New York City will use its scale and purchasing power to set the national standard for vehicle safety.
Building on significant reductions in fleet-involved fatalities since the launch of Vision Zero, the City will expand the use of proven safety technologies such as Intelligent Speed Assistance, automatic emergency braking, high-visibility truck designs, telematics and audible alerts while strengthening driver training across City, contracted and regulated fleets.
“Saving lives on New York City’s streets requires the full force of City government working together toward a shared goal,” said Annie Levers, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Operations. “This 10-Year Action Plan brings agencies together with ambitious commitments, clear accountability and a coordinated approach to ensure that our efforts work together seamlessly. By breaking down silos and making sure every agency is moving in the same direction, we can turn these commitments into action, deliver safer streets more effectively and save lives.”
“Vision Zero has been a game changer for street safety in New York City, with traffic deaths down 30% since its launch in 2014. Now we will aim even higher, dramatically expanding the City’s commitment to street safety for the first time since the program’s launch,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn. “We must utilize a comprehensive strategy that touches every aspect of the transportation system, so that children can confidently walk to school, more New Yorkers feel safe choosing biking and other sustainable forms of transportation and we can rest assured that we don’t have to share the streets with the most flagrant dangerous drivers who put all of us at risk.”
“Vision Zero Reimagined is about making our streets safer for every New Yorker,” said Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) Commissioner Yume Kitasei. “DCAS is committed to leveraging every tool available to prevent crashes and protect vulnerable road users — from installing surround cameras and pedestrian alerts to expanding intelligent speed assistance and more. Vision Zero Reimagined ensures New York City’s municipal fleet remains a national leader in safety innovation.”
“Safe, accessible streets are essential to helping older New Yorkers stay active, independent and connected to the communities they call home,” said NYC Aging Commissioner Dr. Lisa Scott-McKenzie. “I commend Mayor Mamdani for prioritizing this critical work. Every Vision Zero policy is an investment in the safety and well-being of older New Yorkers and their families, and I look forward to continuing this important work with our partners across government.”
“Pedestrians with disabilities face a disproportionately high risk of traffic injuries and fatalities,” said Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities Commissioner Nisha Agarwal. “Vision Zero Reimagined further embeds accessibility into policy and design — making our streets safer for people with disabilities, which in turn makes our communities and city safer for everyone.”
“As a parent myself, I know just how critical it is to ensure safe streets for our students on their way to and from school, especially in peak rush hour,” said Schools Chancellor Kamar H. Samuels. “New York City Public Schools is proud to be part of a collaborative approach that puts the safety and well-being of our students front and center, as we work to create a safer city for all.”
“Protecting lives is the primary mission of the Fire Department, and we are happy to support any effort that makes our City safer,” said Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore. “Working to support Vision Zero with our agency partners, we can help ensure New Yorkers are safe and fulfill our mission of saving lives.”
“Mayor Mamdani has been clear: safe streets require all of government, from enforcement to design to strategic planning, and the Department of Sanitation is proud to be a partner in this important effort,” said Sanitation Commissioner Gregory Anderson. “The DSNY fleet serves every corner of the City, and while it has always been our goal to do so safely, the programs outlined in this plan will make the streets even safer for our workforce and for the people we serve.”
“Every New Yorker deserves streets where safety is the standard — not the exception,” said Taxi & Limousine Commissioner (TLC) Midori Valdivia. “The Vision Zero Reimagined Action Plan makes clear that accountability, smarter enforcement and responsible innovation must guide how we confront today’s most pressing street safety challenges. As part of the city’s multi agency Vision Zero Task Force, the Taxi & Limousine Commission is proud to strengthen our role in this effort by ensuring that professional drivers meet the highest safety and training expectations, expanding enforcement against unlicensed operators, and studying technologies that protect pedestrians, cyclists, riders and drivers.”
“Traffic safety isn’t just about what’s happening in our street, it is also about protecting public health,” said NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Alister F. Martin. “Vision Zero Reimagined is an opportunity to build on progress by using data, working with communities and strengthening prevention as New Yorkers move around our city. Together, we are turning what we learn into safer, healthier neighborhoods for all New Yorkers.”
“NYC Health + Hospitals providers care for patients of traffic-related incidents every day, and our data teams have been evaluating hospital injury data to support the City’s efforts to improve street safety,” said NYC Health + Hospitals President and CEO Mitchell Katz, MD. “We are grateful to Mayor Mamdani and our colleagues in city government for making our streets safer for everyone.”
“This new Action Plan lays out a comprehensive, citywide blueprint as we continue to work toward eliminating all traffic deaths and improving street safety. It targets dangerous driving behaviors, vehicles and street conditions, while enhancing pedestrian safety,” said Corporation Counsel Steve Banks. “Every New Yorker should feel safe whether walking, biking or simply crossing the street in their neighborhood and City.”
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