New Poll Reveals New York City Voters Support Automated Enforcement to Make Streets Safer
Clear Majority of New York City Voters Support Adding More Speed Safety Cameras, Expanding Program Beyond School Zones, Using Automated Enforcement To Curb Reckless Driving
By a 23 point margin, voters support automated enforcement, rather than NYPD officers, for traffic enforcement
78 percent of voters, including 73 percent of drivers, support adding more speed safety cameras in school zones; 60 percent support adding cameras in other areas too
NEW YORK — A new poll reveals widespread support for New York City’s speed safety camera program, and shows that a supermajority of New York City voters supports the program’s expansion to additional areas of the city, beyond school zones, and to additional areas of enforcement, beyond speeding. The poll also demonstrates that a majority of New York City voters support automated traffic enforcement instead of NYPD officers to reduce reckless driving.
The survey reveals that 78 percent of New York City voters, including 73 percent drivers and 93 percent of Latino/Hispanic voters, support adding more speed safety cameras in school zones. A clear majority of voters also support automated camera enforcement for other traffic violations, including running a red light, blocking a bus lane, bike lane or crosswalk. This latest poll, from late 2020, demonstrates an increase in support for speed safety cameras, compared to a poll conducted in late 2016.
“By investing in automated enforcement and street design, New York City can become a global leader in street safety. Now is the time to double down on proven measures that keep our residents safe and reduce racial bias and armed police involvement. ” said Danny Harris, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives. “This new polling should be a wake up call for those running for mayor that automated enforcement not only works, but has broad support from voters and must be expanded further to help us reach Vision Zero.”
“Traffic crashes are the leading cause of injury-related death for children in NYC, and Families for Safe Streets members have been at the forefront of the fight to secure and expand speed safety cameras in New York City,” said Families for Safe Streets Member Dana Lerner, mother of Cooper Stock. “Automated enforcement curbs speeding, saves lives, and is much more fair than the traditional approach of police. While speed safety cameras have reduced fatalities and crashes, the very large majority of New York City children live outside of school zones, where no safety cameras are permitted to operate. We will fight to expand the speed safety program this year, and with public opinion on our side, we believe the time is right to begin using automated enforcement in additional ways to curb reckless drivers.”
The new survey was commissioned by Transportation Alternatives (TA) and conducted by the Siena College Research Institute (SCRI) of registered New York City voters from November to December, 2020. These results come on the heels of a June 2020 report in which TA called for a reimagining of traffic enforcement that would reduce the harm of racial bias and improve safety for all New Yorkers, including the expansion of automated enforcement. Moreover, earlier SCRI polling released in January, 2021 revealed that 70 percent of New York City voters know someone who has been injured or killed due to traffic violence, and 30 percent of voters themselves have been injured.
More results from this newest poll:
WIDESPREAD SUPPORT FOR SPEED SAFETY CAMERAS
78 percent of New York City voters, including 73 percent of car owners, 75 percent of Black voters, and 93 percent of Latino/Hispanic voters, support adding more speed safety cameras within school zones. As more speed cameras have been installed, New Yorkers’ support for those cameras, and the desire for more to be installed within school zones has increased, including among car owners, who had 68 percent support in 2016, Black voters, who had 67 percent support in 2016, and Hispanic/Latino voters who had 88 percent support in 2016.
60 percent of New York City voters, including 53 percent of car owners, 69 percent of Hispanic/Latino voters, and 69 percent of voters age 65 and over, support adding more speed safety cameras outside of school zones too. There has also been a major shift in support in only four years among car owners, who had only 47 percent support in 2016, Hispanic/Latino voters who had 64 percent support in 2016, and voters over age 65 who had 60 percent support in 2016.
SUPPORT FOR ADDITIONAL AUTOMATED ENFORCEMENT
59 percent of New York City voters support relying on speed safety cameras, rather than NYPD officers, for traffic enforcement. This support is highest among younger and nonwhite voters, with 72 percent of voters age 18-34 favoring automated enforcement, and 65 percent of Black voters and 74 percent of Hispanic/Latino voters voters favoring automated enforcement.
85 percent of New York City voters, including 84 percent of those who own cars, support installing cameras that would ticket drivers for running a red light.
68 percent of New York City voters support installing cameras that would ticket drivers for blocking a bus lane, including 80 percent of Hispanic/Latino New Yorkers, and 64 percent of car owners.
67 percent of New York City voters support installing cameras that would ticket drivers for blocking a crosswalk - including 79 percent of New Yorkers whose households make under $50,000/year, 79 percent of voters over age 65, and 62 percent of car owners.
60 percent of New York City voters support installing cameras that would ticket drivers for blocking a bike lane - including 70 percent of Hispanic/Latino New Yorkers, 67 percent of voters over age 65, clear majorities in every borough, and 54 percent of car owners.
SPEED SAFETY CAMERAS WORK
In December 2020, NYC DOT released their latest Automated Speed Enforcement Program Report, which detailed the remarkable success of the speed safety camera program, which is still limited to operation only in school zones and on weekdays between 6AM and 10PM. The report found that in locations where cameras were installed, speeding was reduced on average by 70 percent, and injuries were down 17 percent. Additionally, two-thirds of vehicle owners who received a speeding ticket in the mail in 2019 did not receive another within the calendar year.
WHAT SUPPORTERS ARE SAYING
“No parent, senior, or pedestrian of any age should live in fear of crossing the street because of speeding traffic. Automated enforcement has been proved to slow traffic and save lives. Plain and simple. I stand with the broad base of New Yorkers who stand behind these laws and hope to expand the program to cover more hours and make streets safer for pedestrians,” said Senator Andrew Gounardes.
“New Yorkers want safer streets and that includes ensuring that speeding vehicles face some penalty for endangering others. Expanding the use of speed cameras will help make streets safer by issuing violations even when a police officer is not on the spot. During the pandemic, with fewer vehicles on the road there was more carnage, because wide open roads encouraged speeding. We need to redouble our efforts to protect New Yorkers as they go about their lives” said Assemblymember Deborah J. Glick.
“It’s heartening to see overwhelming support for automated enforcement of speeding, red-light running, and other violations that threaten the safety and impede the mobility of people on New York City's streets. These technologies are proven, they save lives, and they remove human bias so enforcement can be done fairly and equitably. We’ve long advocated for increasing their use, and paired with better roadway design, automated cameras make streets safer for everyone,” said Eric McClure, Executive Director of StreetsPAC.
“Public support works wonders in making any vision a reality. To achieve Vision Zero by the target date of 2024, it is especially important we work to increase the number of speed cameras on our streets and increase automatic enforcement – two of many recommendations we fully support,” said Kate Slevin, Senior Vice President, State Programs and Advocacy at RPA.
“A clear majority of New Yorkers support expanding automated enforcement of NYC streets,” said Liam Blank, Policy & Communications Manager for Tri-State Transportation Campaign. “The city’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic will depend in large part on the efficiency and safety of our streets. A recent analysis by INRIX ranked NYC as the most congested city in the country, underscoring the urgent need for more effective enforcement to keep bus lanes clear of private vehicles. Prioritizing buses as if they are ‘subways on streets' will help move hundreds of thousands of daily bus riders and save the MTA from plummeting ridership and revenue, which threatens to exacerbate the traffic crisis.”
“Speed kills on every street and at any time of day. We need effective enforcement against speeding everywhere in the city and around the clock,” said Jon Orcutt, advocacy director at Bike New York.
The Transportation Alternatives Poll was conducted by The Siena College Research Institute (SCRI) November 30 – December 14, 2020 by random telephone calls to 805 New York City registered voters. The results have an overall margin of error of +/- 3.9 percentage points including the design effects resulting from weighting. Telephone sampling was conducted via a stratified dual-frame probability sample of landline and cell phone (from L-2) telephone numbers from within New York City, weighted to reflect known population patterns. Data was statistically adjusted by age, race/ethnicity, gender, party affiliation, and borough/county to ensure representativeness. SCRI, directed by Donald Levy, Ph.D., conducts political, economic, social and cultural research primarily in New York State. SCRI, an independent, non-partisan research institute, subscribes to the American Association of Public Opinion Research Code of Professional Ethics and Practices.
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