NYMTC Regional Pedestrian Safety Study - New York Metropolitan ...

Children receive a certificate upon completing the session. Safety Town typically handles two
classes at a time, for four classes per day; most Nassau County third graders receive training at
Safety Town. In the summer Safety Town conducts other classes, and children who missed the
regular sessions as well as older children and adults can sign up to attend a summer session.
They have anecdotal evidence of its effectiveness from emergency room inquiries: when children
are brought to local hospitals after pedestrian or bicycle crashes, they are asked if they have
attended Safety Town; they seldom have.
Safety City, New York City: NYCDOT operates six Safety Cities, two in Manhattan and one in
each of the other Boroughs. NYCDOT and Harlem Hospital started the first Safety City program
in Harlem in 1989. The Safety Cities are located in schools, a hospital, and a park. The sessions
are from 10 AM to 1 PM and two third grade classes participate in a session. The sessions are
adapted to the location: For example, the Staten Island Safety City has more emphasis on
bicycles than Manhattan, and also includes
training getting on and off school buses.
Recognizing that third graders often travel to
school without adults, the curriculum lessons
stress decision-making techniques and self
esteem building. A session starts in the
classroom for an hour interactive lecture on
safety, and includes a video on safety. After
that they go outside, and rotate through three
modules: Crossing a street at a signalized
intersection; bicycle riding; and use of seat belts
in the back seat of a car. Upon returning, they
eat a lunch, which they brought, with a safety
video playing. This is followed by an
interactive contest-quiz. By answering questions Figure 3.2 Safety City Class
correctly, children win small prizes, most related
to safety. Additionally, each child receives a small bag of safety materials and brochures. Safety
City staff will visit them at their school a few days after the visit to reinforce the lessons and to
distribute certificates. They used to have a truck at the Harlem site, which was used to show the
children that a truck driver cannot necessarily see them when they are close to the front of the
truck. Some classes are partially given in Spanish. In one year, 280 classes can visit one site; in
a three-year period, all New York City schools will have visited a Safety City. The most recent
Safety City is dedicated to people of all ages who have physical, cognitive, and sensory
disabilities.
Traffic Safety School Outreach Programs: Traffic safety programs are conducted by NYCDOT
Safety Education in schools across the city for children in grades K-2, 4-5, 6-8 and 9-12 (grade 3
is served by Safety City – see above). Both classroom and assembly presentations are provided
which cover pedestrian, bike and car passenger safety. Programs for grades K-2 include puppet
shows, games and hands-on activities. Programs for students in grades 4-5 include interactive
speaker’s presentations and traffic safety musical theater shows. Students in middle and high
schools participate in a two-day improvisational theater/workshop program. Geographic and
demographic traffic accident/injury data for each age group is used to select schools to receive
NYMTC Pedestrian Safety Study 32