Many enjoyed reduced road traffic while driving this year. With fewer cars on the road, it makes sense to assume traffic accidents hit an all-time low. But in New York City, it’s quite the opposite.
Despite empty streets, traffic deaths in New York City in 2020 soared to almost twice as high as in 2019. The number went up from around 70 casualties to 120.
In 2014 Mayor Bill de Blasio introduced a plan to improve street safety called vision zero.
But 2020 marked the deadliest spike on New York’s streets since then. That’s mostly because people were more likely to speed along the city’s empty roads.
