Has Your Municipality Reduced its Speed Limit to 25 mph?
Background & Resources
Did you know that a vehicle traveling at 30 mph is about 70 percent more likely to kill a pedestrian than one driven at 25 mph? So why do so many of New York's neighborhood streets have 30 mph speed limits? NYBC is working with colleagues at the New York State Safe Streets Coalition to help NY municipalities make this change.
Thanks to the work of NYBC, NYSSSC and many other safe streets advocates, since 2022 cities and villages and certain towns have the authority to reduce area speed limits for municipally managed streets to 25 mph. It is easy and inexpensive for Cities, Villages, Towns with a population over 50,000, and "Suburban" Towns to make this life-saving change. Some communities are spending nothing at all and some communities investing well under $10,000 on engineering investigations.
If your community is still at 30 mph, can we help you reach out to your local council or board to advocate for this life-saving change? Start with our FAQ, and contact us at
Other helpful resources: NYS Law re: Speed limits: VAT/1643, List of Suburban Towns, Criteria and Process for Suburban Towns.
New york Communities already at 25 mph
This link opens a list of all communities we know of that have already adopted local 25 mph laws or are in the process of adoption. The vast majority of these have happened since the 2022 law was adopted. We have also included a few communities that worked with NYDOT to reduce their speed limits to 2025 prior to the 2022 law.
Contact
VIDEOS:
february 2025 webinar Implementing 25 mph in your community
Our panel of experts - featuring engineering, legal, and political leaders - shares firsthand insights about how your community can make this life-saving change. Moderator: Anne Savage (New York Bicycling Coalition). Panelists are: Amy Cohen (Families for Safe Streets), Dorcey Applyrs (City of Albany), Matthew Roe (Stantec), Matthew Carmody (AKRF), and Maxine Barasch, Esq. (City of Schenectady) Read more about the panelists here
October 2024 nY Bike summit Panel Discussion
This recorded one-hour panel discussion from the NY Bike Summit in October 2024 features brief presentations from each panelist, sharing insights and experiences from the transition to 25 mph speed limits. The session concludes with a dynamic Q&A segment that addresses key audience questions.
Moderator: Daniel Flanzig, esq, (Board Member New York Bicycling, Coalition) Panelists (Leilani Yizar-Reid (Trustee, Village of Mamaroneck), Matthew Carmody (Vice President AKRF, Inc.), Marisa Franchini (Corporation Counsel, City of Albany), Matthew Roe, Stantec, Inc.