NYC Slashes Speed Limits In These Areas

NEW YORK, NY — New York City plans to lower speed limits to 15 miles per hour near hundreds of schools across the five boroughs, a sweeping expansion of traffic safety measures authorized under Sammy’s Law.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn said the city will install 15-mph school slow zones at more than 800 additional school locations during 2026.

The expansion will bring the total number of school zones with the lower speed limit to about 1,300 by the end of the year.

City officials said they plan to extend the 15-mph limits to every eligible school site by the end of Mamdani’s first term.

The administration announced the initiative at Flushing International High School, which shares a campus with J.H.S. 189 Daniel Carter Beard.

Transportation crews installed a new 15-mph speed limit on 147th Street between Barclay Avenue and Sanford Avenue outside the campus.

“Families spoke up after unimaginable loss to fight for Sammy’s Law and deliver our city the power to make our streets safer for New Yorkers,” Mamdani said. “Lower speeds save lives, and we will use every tool at our disposal to protect our neighbors as they move about our city.”

The program targets approximately 2,300 school locations citywide that house about 3,200 public, private, parochial and charter K-12 schools, including campuses with multiple schools operating in the same building.

Transportation officials said roughly 700 locations with existing 20-mph school zones will see limits reduced to 15 mph, while another 100 schools with current 25-mph limits will receive new slow zones.

Officials will prioritize installations using traffic safety data and coordinate the changes with other street safety improvements.

“Our school children and their families should feel safe and comfortable as they travel to and from class,” Flynn said. “Speeding is the leading cause of traffic deaths, and even a small speed reduction can mean the difference between life and death in a crash.”

Transportation officials cited research showing a pedestrian struck at 25 mph is more than three times as likely to suffer serious injury as someone struck at 15 mph.

Before implementing each new speed zone, the department will provide a required 60-day notice and comment period to the local community board.

The agency also plans to continue installing safety features such as speed humps, hardened daylighting and redesigned intersections at high-risk locations.

The expansion marks the largest use of Sammy’s Law since state lawmakers granted New York City authority to set lower speed limits in 2024.

The law honors Sammy Cohen Eckstein, a 12-year-old killed by a speeding driver in Brooklyn in 2013.

Advocates for the law say the measure aims to prevent similar tragedies.

“In 2013, my 12-year-old son Sammy was struck and killed by a speeding driver in Brooklyn, and ever since, I’ve been fighting for safer speeds on our streets,” said Amy Cohen, founder of Families for Safe Streets. “We’re excited that the Mamdani administration is beginning to implement Sammy’s Law, and we eagerly await their plan for an even wider implementation.”

Lawmakers who backed the legislation said the new speed limits could significantly improve safety near schools.

State Assembly Member Linda B. Rosenthal, who sponsored the state legislation, said the expanded school zones will help prevent fatal crashes.

“With the expanded implementation of Sammy’s Law around New York City’s schools, we will make our streets safer and drastically reduce the chances of vehicle crashes turning fatal,” Rosenthal said.