Less fatalities but more injuries in New York auto accidents last fall

37 pedestrians and one bicyclist were among the 50 victims who died in NYC traffic accidents last fall (September, October, November).  This is 15 less accident fatalities than in the fall of 2015,  21 less than in the fall of 2014 and 34 less than in the fall of 2013. Since 2013, the number of people dying on the road has been decreasing each fall in the city.

While less people are dying in NYC car accidents, more are getting injured. After recording a decline in 2014, the number of people injured in traffic accidents during the fall months went back up slightly in 2015  and reached its highest in 2016. 15,480 people were injured in traffic accidents in New York City during the 3-month period of September, October and November  2016 compared to 13,693 during the same period of 2015, 13,350 during the same period of 2014 and 14,449 during the same period of 2013.

The total number of motor vehicle accidents in New York City is continuing to rise as well.

Despite declining to their lowest level last fall, pedestrian fatalities still accounted for the majority of  traffic deaths in New York City. 37 pedestrians died in traffic accidents over the months of September, October and November 2016, compared to respectively 42, 40 and 55  during the same period of 2015, 2014 and 2013. The number of motorists dying behind the wheel also declined significantly since 2013.

Following the launch of Vision Zero, the number of pedestrian fatalities recorded a significant decline from to 2013 to 2014. It then stayed almost stable after that. In the graph below, the red trend line shows only a slight decline over the last 4 years. The black 3-month moving average shows the increase in pedestrian deaths during the coldest months of each year.  A particularly sharp increase can be noticed at the end of 2015.

At the beginning of last November, as part of  Vision Zero, a “Dusk and Darkness” campaign was launched to raise awareness about the rising number of pedestrians accidents during the winter darkness. As a result, “only” 11 pedestrians died in traffic accidents in NYC last November compared to respectively 20, 12 and 25 in November 2015, November 2014 and November 2013.

The Dusk and Darkness campaign may also have help kept the number of bicyclist deaths to zero last November. Despite an increasing trend over the last 4 years, the number of bicyclists dying during the fall months declined last year. 1 person died in a bicycle accident over the months of September, October and November 2016, compared to respectively 3, 4 and 4 for the same period of 2015, 2014 and 2013.

While traffic fatalities have recorded a decline in New York City over the last few years, traffic injuries have been increasing. Since last April the monthly number of people injured in motor vehicle accidents in the city has been staying above 5,000, a monthly record level. Motorists are the most at risk to suffer injuries in a motor vehicle accident, followed by passengers and pedestrians. Last November 2,170 motorists, 1,384 passengers, 1,094 pedestrians and 366 bicyclists were injured in traffic accidents in New York City for a total of 5,014 people. The total number of traffic injuries was respectively 4,357, 4,222 and 4,692 in November 2015, November 2014 and November 2013.

Interestingly, the number of motorists injured in traffic accidents raised significantly over the last two years, while the number of passengers injured recorded a decline over the same period of time.

After recording a decline in 2014, pedestrians injuries started to increase again. A total of 1,094 pedestrians were injured in auto accidents in New York City last November. This is almost the same number as in November 2013. It is also almost 100 more injuries than in November 2015 or than in November 2014. Over the fall months of September, October and November 2016 a total of 2,919 pedestrians injuries were recorded by the NYPD compared to respectively 2,845, 2,737 and 3,174 for the same period of 2015, 2014 and 2013.

As the temperature drops less and less people are using their bikes in New York City. Therefore, every year bicycle accidents and related injuries decrease over the months of September, October and November. However, while looking at the global trend over the last 4 years, bicycle accidents and related injuries are on a steady rise. Last fall, a total of 1,343 people were injured in bicycle accidents in New York City compared to 1,270 in the fall of 2015, 1,193 in the fall of 2014 and 1,184 in the fall of 2013.

Similar to bicycle accidents, motorcycle accidents are also highly correlated to seasons. They usually record a spike in July and August and a decrease over the fall and winter months. However the trend over the last few years indicates that motorcycle accidents in New York City are on the rise. The number of motorcycle accidents during the fall reached its highest in 2016. The NYPD recorded 722 motorcyclist accidents over the months of September, October and November 2016 compared to respectively 699, 590 and 645 for the same period of 2015, 2014 and 2013.

Bus accidents are also on the rise in NYC despite a decline last fall compared to the previous years. There were 1,884 bus accidents during the months of September, October and November 2016 compared to respectively 1,936, 1,928 and 1,918 for the same period of 2015, 2014 and 2013. The new Right of Way Law may have been a factor in this recent decrease. Bus drivers may now be more cautious as they risk being criminally charged if  they injure or killed a pedestrian.

The number of truck accidents doubled between the fall of 2015 and the fall of 2016. They were 4,416 truck accidents during the months of September, October and November 2016 compared to 2,216 for the same period of 2015, 2,022 for the same period of 2014 and 1,946 for the same period of 2013. More and more people ordering goods online and also an explosion of the real estate market in New York City may have contributed to the rise of truck traffic in the city and therefore to a rise in truck accidents.