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Brooklyn Drivers Kill The Most People In NYC
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Jun 16, 2013
Modified Jun 16, 2013
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By
Christopher Robbins
Published Jun 16, 2013
Modified Jun 16, 2013
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Speeding drivers kill more people in Brooklyn than any other borough, and 88% of Brooklyn drivers break the 30 mph speed limit, according to an analysis of 2011 traffic data by Transportation Alternatives. The data, which was obtained by the Post, builds an even stronger case for speed cameras: only 2,028 speeding citations were handed out in Brooklyn in 2011, but TA clocked 2,232 speeding Brooklyn drivers in just 12 hours.
In 2011, 79 people were killed in Kings County by automobiles, and more than 23,000 were injured. Queens saw 67 fatalities; the Bronx, 65; Manhattan, 45; Staten Island, 12, for a total of 268 citywide. In 2012, that number jumped to 274.
While it's not news that the NYPD makes speeding a low priority (as police commissioner Ray Kelly has stated previously, speeding tickets require "experts" and radar guns; tinted window tickets do not) the analysis of data seems aimed at pressuring the state Senators from Brooklyn who killed speed camera legislation in March: Republicrat Simcha Felder, and Martin Golden, a former NYPD officer who has been accused of siding with the PBA to suffocate the cameras' chances in Albany.
“Our state government must allow New York City to deploy this life-saving technology, and our Brooklyn representatives, in particular, should be on board," Transportation Alternatives' executive director Paul Steely White said.
Indeed, speed cameras save lives. Washington D.C. has seen a 73% decrease in traffic fatalities since the cameras were installed around 12 years ago.
Tagged
brooklyn
cis
pedestrian fatalities
speed cameras
traffic fatalities
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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