Pump the breaks! New York City is implementing 15 mph 'School Slow Zones' city wide in an effort to protect kids on city streets.

An additional 800 school locations will see changed speed limits this year, with a total of 1,300 slow school zones by the end of 2026, according to the city. Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his administration will expand the zones to cover all 2,300 school locations by the end of his first term.

Locations will be prioritized based on data and other street safety improvement projects, according to City Hall.

“Families spoke up after unimaginable loss to fight for Sammy’s Law and deliver our city the power to make our streets safer for New Yorkers,” said Mayor Mamdani. “Today’s expansion of Slow Zones for schools across all five boroughs is just the beginning. Lower speeds save lives, and we will use every tool at our disposal to protect our neighbors as they move about our city.”

Speed limits have already been lowered at roughly 100 locations since Sammy's Law was passed in 2024. The law was fiercely advocated for after the death of 12-year-old Sammy Cohen Eckstein, who was hit by a driver on Prospect Park West and Third Street.

The law gives the city authority to reduce speed limits to 20 mph with signs on streets, and to 10 mph for roads with safety-related redesigns.

“Our school children and their families should feel safe and comfortable as they travel to and from class. Speeding is the leading cause of traffic deaths, and even a small speed reduction can mean the difference between life and death in a crash,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn. “These speed limit reductions will follow our data-driven Vision Zero approach to deliver the greatest safety impact.”

The math behind the speed limit? The DOT says a person hit at 25 mph is more than three times likely to be critically injured than a person hit at 15 mph.

The DOT will provide a mandatory 60-day notice and comment period to local community boards before the speed limit is changed. Upgraded street and intersection calming measures to naturally slow down cars like speed bumps and hardened daylighting will be completed on roads near schools that are deemed the most dangerous.