Evan Simko-Bednarski
New York Daily News
(TNS)
In their most dire moments — waiting for an ambulance, a fire truck or the police — Manhattanites are caught in a literal jam.
That’s the conclusion of a report expected Friday from State Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal and former city Traffic Commissioner “Gridlock” Sam Schwartz, who found that vehicle speeds in Midtown and lower Manhattan are slower than they’ve ever been — and that’s causing emergency response times across all agencies to rise to record levels.
Using GPS data from taxicabs and other for-hire vehicles, Schwartz estimates the average speed of vehicular traffic in Midtown to be just 4.8 mph. The average speed of traffic in all of Manhattan south of 60th St. is slightly faster, but not by much — vehicles average 6.9 mph.
“Since 1971 we started regularly collecting [traffic speed] data,” Schwartz told the Daily News. “These are astoundingly low speeds — and they’re dangerous.”
Hoylman-Sigal — who represents Manhattan’s West Side — told the News that he became concerned about emergency response time after he happened upon a man “writhing in pain” on W. 28th St. on June 25.
“We dialed 911 repeatedly,” he said of himself and a group of bystanders. “We tried to flag down a private vehicle, and ran to different corners of the block hoping to see an emergency vehicle appear.
“And one didn’t until 37 minutes later,” he said. “I just find it unacceptable.”
Hoylman-Sigal said he’s since checked up on the man, who has recovered.
Citywide, crawling traffic has crippled response times over the past decade, Schwartz and Hoylman-Sigal said.
EMS average response times to life-threatening situations has climbed from roughly 9 minutes and 40 seconds in 2014 to 12 minutes and 26 seconds this year, a 29 percent increase, according to the report. City data show increased travel time is responsible for a minute and a half of the added delay.
The NYPD’s responses to so-called “critical” incidents — like shootings, robberies or burglaries — has gone up 23 percent over the same period, from just under 8 minutes in 2014 to 9 minutes and 41 seconds in 2024. Most of that difference — 1 minute and 23 seconds — can be ascribed to increased travel time.
The FDNY’s medical emergency response time has soared in 10 years, up from 8 minutes and 19 seconds to 14 minutes and 16 seconds — a 72 percent climb. Increased travel time due to traffic accounts for 2 minutes of that 6-minute delay.
It was not immediately clear what other factors have contributed to the dramatic increase in the FDNY’s medical response time, but the mayor’s yearly management report said the department was currently working to reduce turnaround times while dropping patients off at local hospitals.
In emergencies, minutes matter, Schwartz and Hoylman-Sigal contend, citing multiple studies indicating that an extra minute or two in travel can be the difference between survival or recovery in strokes or cardiac arrest incidents.
“New Yorkers and visitors are at an increased risk every day due to worsening traffic congestion,” the report s