A New York speed limits could descend from 25 to 20 miles per hour, from about 40 to 32 kilometers per hour, in 17 Community districts of the city. The request was submitted on Monday, October 19 by the auditor Mark Levine and several political representatives, who urged the Department of Transportation (DOT) to apply the Sammy’s Law more extensively, the law that since 2024 allows New York to reduce the limits on city roads.
The proposal covers eight districts of Manhattan, five of Brooklyn, three of Queens and one of the Bronx. These are not areas chosen by the administration: all the 17 Community Boards concerned have already approved resolutions in favour of reducing speed on the roads of their respective territories.
The request is also based on accident data. According to an analysis published by the supervisor’s office, in 2025 in 17 districts there were 22.490 road accidents, with 60 deaths and 11.644 wounded. Levine asks to give priority to both the neighborhoods that have already expressed their support and to those in which the greatest number of victims is recorded.
Sammy’s Law is named after Sammy Cohen Eckstein, a 12-year-old boy invested and killed in 2013 at Park Slope, Brooklyn. The law was approved by the State of New York in 2024 after a long campaign promoted by its family and road safety organizations. Before its introduction, the Municipality had less autonomy in changing speed limits.
The standard allows to lower them to 20 hourly miles on certain roads and within specific areas. The change requires prior communication to the competent Community Board, which has 60 days to express its observations. It is therefore not necessary to approve a new law for each individual area concerned.
So far, however, the application has been limited. According to the Transportation Alternatives organization, cited by amNewYork, the limits were lowered to 20 hourly miles only on 2 percent of the suitable roads. The Mamdani administration has instead concentrated part of the interventions on the schools: by 2026 it plans to bring to 15 hourly miles the limit in about 1,300 school areas.
Levine believes that this measure is not sufficient and calls for a wider application of the law. The letter, addressed to transport commissioner Mike Flynn, is also signed by the presidents of the districts of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens and the president of the Commission Transportation of the City Council, Shaun Abreu.
For the moment limits do not change. The request is not an executive measure and the DOT has not announced a calendar to introduce new restrictions. Levine asked for a written reply clarifying how the administration intends to proceed.
The municipality already has the tools to intervene on the roads concerned, but it will have to establish which to include, complete the consultation procedures and update the signs. The stated goal is to reduce the severity of accidents: even a few kilometers of difference can affect the consequences of an investment, especially when pedestrians and cyclists are involved.
L’articolo New York wants to lower speed limits in 17 districts proviene da IlNewyorkese.
