More than half of fatal and injury-causing accidents happen in or near intersections. New York City has the worst traffic in the United States, and congested streets combined with heavy foot traffic often lead to disastrous consequences when it comes to accidents. Intersections are where these two types of traffic come together, and when pedestrians and motorists are not careful, serious accidents can occur.

Traffic lights, crosswalks, bike lanes, and left turns create chaos at intersections if travelers are not paying attention and following the rules of the road. If you’ve been injured in a New York City intersection accident, contact the Mark E. Seitelman Law Offices. Our compassionate legal team has 30 years of experience helping New Yorkers obtain financial compensation for their injuries and losses.

Driver Distraction and Error Cause NYC Intersection Accidents

Driver error is a major contributor to all types of car accidents, including intersection crashes. Distraction, specifically, is among the top causes of collisions, and in a city as bustling as New York, distractions are everywhere. When drivers, pedestrians, and bicyclists do not pay full attention to the road and their surroundings, accidents can cause catastrophic injuries and damage.

There are three types of distracted driving: manual, visual, and cognitive. Anything that takes your hands from the steering wheel, your eyes off the road, or your mind off your driving is considered a distraction. Intersections require an especially high level of attention because of the increased processing necessary to safely navigate this part of the road. From watching traffic lights and determining who has the right of way to navigating lane directions and keeping an eye out for bicyclists and pedestrians, drivers in New York City intersections must pay close attention to avoid causing an accident.

Effective Solutions for Improving Safety at Dangerous Intersections

Distracted drivers are not the only potential cause of intersection accidents in New York. Cities in the United States are not typically pedestrian-friendly. Designed for cars, the streets in NYC are inherently dangerous for people traveling by foot or on a bicycle. In addition to this imbalance in the design, maintenance on the roads, sidewalks, and other crucial infrastructure in New York City is lacking in some boroughs. When government entities fail to maintain the streets and create dangerous conditions for travelers and commuters, they may share in the liability for any accidents that occur as a result of their negligence.

Creating safer streets and intersections is a win-win situation for New Yorkers, and some possible strategies include:

  • Improving road designs
  • Providing signs warning drivers of upcoming intersections
  • Adding earlier warnings of turns and lane assignments
  • Limiting roadside obstructions like parked cars at intersections
  • Increasing bike lane spacing
  • Reducing speeds by installing speed bumps or lowering speed limits
  • Maintaining proper lighting at intersections

Some solutions are easier to implement than others, but any changes that increase safety are worth the effort. There are also initiatives like Vision Zero, which attempts to completely eliminate traffic fatalities and severe injuries by contributing to efforts that increase street safety and mobility.

Identifying New York’s Most Hazardous Intersections

Vision Zero maps and New York City’s public database that tracks accident statistics include details on the most dangerous intersections in the boroughs. Fatal accidents are most likely to occur at the following intersections:

  • Brooklyn – Flatbush Avenue and Avenue V
  • Queens – Belt Parkway to South Conduit Avenue
  • Manhattan – Avenue of the Americas and West 23rd Street
  • The Bronx – Whitlock Avenue and East 165th Street

Many of the most dangerous intersections have higher speeds or are close to roads with high speeds, which translates to fatal injuries, especially for pedestrians and bicyclists.

How Vision Zero Initiatives Can Reduce Intersection Accidents

Vision Zero is an international movement and strategy used to decrease fatal and catastrophic traffic accidents. New York City first adopted Vision Zero in 2014, including approaches that tend to make driving, walking, and cycling safer like:

  • Changing street design
  • Adding or changing signals and street markings
  • Installing additional street lights at intersections
  • Updating laws and regulations regarding parking and turning

New York City has implemented changes such as high visibility crosswalks and extended medians, which have made an impact on injury-causing crashes in the updated intersections.

After an Intersection Accident in New York City

Despite the changes over the past 10 years that NYC has been involved in Vision Zero, improvement is slow, and there is still much work to be done to make the streets safer for everyone. If you’ve been involved in an intersection accident, legal guidance is a must to ensure you have the best chance of obtaining fair compensation.

Mark E. Seitelman Law Offices have been a reliable fixture in New York City for 30 years, providing trusted legal representation and compassionate advocacy for injured drivers, passengers, pedestrians, and bicyclists. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation with one of our NYC intersection accident lawyers.