Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
Q&A
Discussion on effectiveness of hardened daylighting and neck downs
1:31:27
·
131 sec
Council Member Julie Won questions the DOT's claims about the effectiveness of hardened daylighting versus other safety treatments, particularly neck downs. Deputy Commissioner Eric Beaton explains the DOT's perspective on these treatments.
- Won challenges the apparent contradiction in DOT's report about the effectiveness of hardened daylighting versus neck downs
- Beaton clarifies that neck downs are considered a form of hardened daylighting but with additional benefits
- The discussion highlights the complexity of comparing different safety treatments and their relative effectiveness
Julie Won
1:31:27
According to the same study, hardened daylighting has a significant safety benefit but is not as effective as other treatments.
1:31:34
The report claims that on average hardened daylighting reduces injuries by only zero point fourteen injuries per year per intersection.
1:31:43
It also stated that other safety treatments exist such as neck downs which significantly reduce injuries by zero point five injury per year.
1:31:53
Are neck downs a form of hardened daylighting?
1:31:55
If yes, then how can you claim that neck downs are more effective than hardened daylighting as a safety treatment when it is a type of hardened daylighting per your definition?
1:32:06
And if you believe no, then why did you include them in your hardened daylighting category?
Eric Beaton
1:32:14
Sure.
1:32:15
Good questions that I'm happy to get into.
1:32:18
First, just in terms of the before and after study and the sample size, we looked at every intersection that had been daylit between 2019 and 2021.
1:32:27
The reason we chose that time period is that it was the most recent where we could get three years of after data as well as three years of before data.
1:32:34
So we feel very comfortable that hundreds of intersections times three years of before and after data is actually a very robust sample.
1:32:43
And the statistical significance tests support that.
1:32:46
So we feel very good about that.
1:32:49
More would always be better, right?
1:32:50
Like if you could study everything forever and add more and more intersections, would get more and more sample size.
1:32:56
But we do feel very comfortable with the number and amount that we looked at, particularly with the number of years before and after.
1:33:04
And then in terms of neck downs, I think there's one way to look at neck downs as the absolute best form of hardened daylighting, right, where they do do that.
1:33:13
They also do more.
1:33:14
They provide the shortened crossing for pedestrians.
1:33:18
So they are sort of hardened daylighting plus, which is why we looked at them a little bit separately.
1:33:24
When we looked at the hardened daylighting in that 2019 to 2021 period, we did look at neck downs as part of that.
1:33:31
So they were included.
1:33:33
We want to highlight that as a treatment they do more than just daylight the intersections.
Julie Won
1:33:38
Okay, so it is hard and daylighting and it works and it does more than just what you're describing.