From January 1, 2009 through May 31, 2012, 2,442 vehicle crashes occurred involving pedestrians or bicyclists in Westchester County. During the same period, there were 1,135 vehicle crashes with pedestrians or bicyclists in Albany County, according to crash data files TSTC acquired from the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) through a FOIL request. (When TSTC received this data from NYSDOT in April 2013, the data was complete up to May 31, 2012.)

Of the almost 2,500 Westchester County crashes, 2,027 crashes involved pedestrians and 415 involved bicyclists, while in Albany County, 805 crashes involved pedestrians and 330 involved bicyclists. Thirty-one of the crashes in Westchester were fatal as were 21 of the crashes in Albany.

Tri-State’s mapping of the crashes (Westchester and Albany) indicate that pedestrian and bicyclist safety must be a greater concern for both county governments. Thankfully for some residents of Albany County, just last week local leaders in the City of Albany took a strong step towards addressing unsafe cycling and walking environments by passing a Complete Streets ordinance. The ordinance will help ensure that City roads are designed and redesigned with the needs of all users in mind, but a lack of a county policy omits roads under the purview of Albany County.

Similarly, a number of Westchester County municipalities have also passed Complete Streets policies that cover roads under municipal jurisdiction, but the County has yet to pass a policy that will address county roads. New York State’s Complete Streets law, which addresses all State-controlled roads and roads that are funded with state and federal dollars, went into effect in 2012.

TSTC’s annual Most Dangerous Roads for Walking reports, which examine pedestrian fatalities in Connecticut, New Jersey and downstate New York, show that arterial roads – roads designed with vehicles, and not pedestrians and bicyclists in mind— are the most dangerous for these vulnerable users. TSTC’s 2013 Report finds that “arterials make up almost 60 percent of pedestrian fatalities in the tri-state region, yet account for only 15.3 percent of lane miles in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.”

TSTC has yet to determine whether this trend is consistent in this most recent mapping of Westchester and Albany County crashes, but users may “zoom in” to see locations of crashes for themselves.

Editor note: this post has been revised.