New York’s Deadliest Neighborhoods for Pedestrians

In an article for PIX 11, Emily Rahhal highlights the New York City neighborhoods listed as most dangerous to people on foot by the NYC Crash Mapper.

Borough Park takes the dubious top honor, with six deadly crashes in 2023. “The Upper West Side, East Harlem, Williamsburg, Flushing, Ozone Park, and Woodside, were the next deadliest neighborhoods for pedestrians, each with three fatalities in 2023. Many neighborhoods, like Harlem, Hell’s Kitchen and Soho, had none.” Among the boroughs, Queens had the most pedestrian deaths at 31. 

The long-term trends are more encouraging. “Since 2013, pedestrian deaths have dropped by over 40% across New York City, according to the Department of Transportation. Overall, traffic deaths have decreased by over 12%, according to the DOT.”

New York City recently won the right to set its own speed limits, paving the way for lower speed limits that traffic safety advocates say are shown to reduce pedestrian fatalities and injuries thanks to a law dubbed Sammy’s Law, which Governor Hochul included in the FY2025 state budget last week.