NYC Pedestrian Deaths Increased By More Than 20% In 2024, Study Finds

NEW YORK CITY — Child and pedestrian fatalities rose in New York City in 2024, according to a new study.

In 2024, traffic crashes killed 253 New Yorkers, or one person every 35 hours, according to analysis from Transportation Alternatives and Families for Safe Streets.

From 2023 to 2024, pedestrian fatalities increased by 21 percent, according to the study. Child fatalities rose 33% in 2024.

According to Transportation Alternatives, the speed camera program has demonstrated success at changing the behavior of all but the most egregious drivers. From the last five months of 2022 – when speed cameras first went 24/7 – through the same period of 2024, speed safety camera violations fell by 30 percent.

Though, at least 132 vehicles received 100 or more speed safety camera tickets in 2024. Two vehicles received more than 500 speed safety camera tickets, with one New York driver receiving 562 tickets in 2024, the analysis showed.

“Safe street infrastructure, automated enforcement, and curbing repeated speeders are key to saving lives, and there’s so much more work to do in New York City," Ben Furnas, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives told Patch.

"Too many pedestrians are still being killed without critical safety improvements, too many people on bikes are still being killed on streets without protected bike lanes, and too many super-speeders are putting all of us at risk while racking up hundreds of tickets. These numbers are a sobering call to action for everyone who cares about safety in the five boroughs.”

In 2024, 16 children were killed in traffic crashes. Half of these children were killed while walking or biking, according to officials.

Traffic crashes killed 121 pedestrians in 2024, up from 100 in 2023.

Families for Safe Streets member Maria Sumba, whose own daughter was killed by a truck driver as she walked home, said the fatal crash was preventable.

"Our elected leaders must realize that their inaction has consequences in the form of dead children, siblings, parents and friends. The time is now to take action that will save other families from living this nightmare," Sumba told Patch.

You can read the full study here.