if someone is speeding in the city, they should be ticketed.

jeez. nice progressive support for pedestrian safety there.

Not every single comment here on DU has to be serious. It is true that there will be more tickets. My comment had nothing to do with not supporting pedestrian safety. WTF right back at you.

When politicians blame speed as the problem, they ignore other contributing factors that are just as deadly, bad or confusing signage, poorly marked intersections, confusing and poorly timed traffic control devices.

It costs money to fix those problems. It's the only reason they don't get fixed.


I would venture that when speed is the over-riding factor in a vehicle/pedestrian accident, that car was going way more than 30mph.

So, yes, it is somewhat about revenue as that too will also new be a result of the new lower limit, and politicians are well aware of that side effect.

There have been more than one instance where lowering speed limits actually increased accident rates, it is by far not a panacea.

Re-read what I posted about when speed *is* a factor, the vehicle is usually far over the posted limit by a large fraction.

That speed limit sign stopped nothing bad from happening.

There is a ton of traffic study stuff out there that addresses this type of problem, easily researched on the USDOT website.

you're almost making an argument similar to those made against gun control.

"well, they're speeding anyway, so lowering the speed limit won't do any good."

you're acknowledging, as experts do, that speed is an issue and that speeds must be reduced.

the speed limit is just one aspect, but it is an important one.

I defer to their expertise in transportation safety studies authorized by both government and private institutions (insurance groups, universities, safety foundations, etc.).


The report issued by the NYC DOT itself stated that the number one cause of these type of accidents was driver inattention, followed by failure to yield.

Most of those type of accidents occur when the vehicle is in the act of turning, not speeding, or when a pedestrian is already in a crosswalk.

Speeding was not listed as the primary cause at all. Reducing the speed limit is a reaction, not a solution.

Explain to me how lowering the speed limit fixes or lessens those two primary reasons for accidents. It may ameliorate deleterious effects when it is a contributing factor, but it does nothing to prevent the vast majority of this type of accident.


But politicians saw it as 'doing something'. Too bad it's the wrong thing.