Traffic-related fatalities are significantly down in New York City for the first six months of 2025, except in Brooklyn.
During the first six months of 2025, traffic crashes killed 90 people, according to new analysis from the nonprofits Transportation Alternatives and Families for Safe Streets. This was the second-safest first half year on record behind 2018, and has been especially safe for those driving and traveling in cars. Nevertheless, so far in 2025, a New Yorker has been killed every two days.
In addition, not a single driver, passenger, moped rider or motorcyclist has died in Manhattan's congestion relief zone, the analysis found.
The decline in fatalities can partially be explained by the onset of congestion pricing, investments in street safety infrastructure and the Vision Zero Program, the report said.
That said, the number of fatalities in Brooklyn remained high, the analysis found. Compared to the Vision Zero-era average, 24% more pedestrians and 11% more motorists have been killed so far this year. More than two-thirds of the traffic deaths in Brooklyn were New Yorkers killed while walking. Of the six children killed in 2025, four were killed by cars in Brooklyn.
Brooklyn is the most dangerous borough per capita and is 12% more deadly than the city’s average. Fatalities remain high where the city has stalled or reversed street safety projects; five New Yorkers have been killed on Flatbush Avenue since a redesign was first presented in 2022, the report said.
The report also mentioned the ongoing controversy over the decision to take away a portion of the protected bike lanes on Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg by New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
"New York City can’t afford to rip up proven safety improvements like the Bedford Avenue bike lane or stall on critical infrastructure like the 34th Street busway — and decisions like these will mean more crashes, deaths, and serious injuries," Ben Furnas, executive director of Transportation Alternatives said in a statement. "Looking forward, the city can and should deepen its commitment to slower speeds, safer street design and an unflinching focus on saving lives.”
The report's authors recommended the city to implement safety improvements throughout Brooklyn from Third Avenue in Sunset Park, Ashland Place and Navy Street in Fort Greene, Bedford Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant, and quicken the pace on the installation of center-running bus lanes on Flatbush Avenue. In addition, the nonprofits said speed limits should be lowered to 20-miles-per-hour and daylighting measures, or removing parking spaces near intersections, should be implemented on every corner.
