New York City DOT introduces rewind campaign to combat speeding and other dangerous behaviors
TOI GLOBAL DESK | TOI GLOBAL | Nov 18, 2025, 00:58 IST
The NYC DOT launched a public service campaign titled "Rewind" that conveys the message of the irreversible consequences of a dangerous driving decision. As a part of Vision Zero, the initiative aims to lower traffic fatalities by imparting knowledge and conducting outreach.
TL;DR
New York has launched "Rewind," a $3 million advertising campaign that targets the reduction of illegal and unsafe driving behaviours by showing in a very clear way how just one choice can result in a tragic crash. The multilingual campaign is in line with the safety objectives of the city's Vision Zero program.
The New York City Department of Transportation on Monday introduced a new vision zero public awareness campaign called "Rewind" which is targeting the behaviors of drivers who are recklessly driving by showing the irreversible consequences of a single bad decision.
"Rewind" is the main idea behind the use of television, digital, and print advertisements, in which, after showing a crash scene, the film is rewound to the point where the driver made the wrong decision. The point they are making is that accidents in real life cannot be undone.
According to NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez, the campaign embodies perfectly the idea that everyday habits behind the wheel can end in tragedy. "The crashes we are talking about here are usually the outcome of a small decision, which changes, dramatically, the lives of the people involved, the victims, and their families," said Rodriguez in his official statement. "The commercials are there to remind the drivers of the fact that they have only one choice to make, which can change everything. There is no 'rewind' in a crash," he added.
For a year, the 3-million-dollar project will be visible in different kinds of media such as television and radio stations, digital platforms, buses, and billboards as well as at numerous sports venues like Madison Square Garden and Barclays Center. Besides 12 languages, the campaign will be available to every resident of the five boroughs. According to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, males are more likely than females to be the cause of serious crashes, hence the advertisement will be more direct with this group of people.
DCAS Commissioner Louis A. Molina said the ads underscore the effect of traffic crashes on the families and the neighborhoods they come from. "Every traffic crash that you see has behind it a family, a community, and a story that cannot be reversed," Molina said. The Citywide Administrative Services Department will continue to support fleet safety and Vision Zero goals, he added.
This effort from the NYC DOT is just one of many to lower the number of traffic fatalities by means of education, enforcement, and redesign of the streets. According to the city, the number of traffic deaths in the first nine months of 2025 dropped by 18 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. Besides the speed and red-light camera programs, the city officials are also attributing the decline to investments in the construction of protected bike lanes and pedestrian infrastructure. These improvements are all funded by the agency's yearly Vision Zero budget of $272 million and its 10-year capital plan of $5 billion.
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso described the effort as one that communicates a very simple and clear message that the road is a dangerous place and that reckless driving is the main cause of people losing their lives. Ben Furnas, the executive director of Transportation Alternatives, brought up the point that approximately 250 New Yorkers die due to the city's traffic crashes every year, and these fatalities can be entirely eradicated just by putting in place safer street designs and ensuring that drivers are held responsible.
In his view, the campaign, as per the CEO of Bike New York, Ken Podziba, is going beyond just pointing out that drivers are the ones who have to make sure the safety of the most vulnerable road users. On the other hand, AAA Northeast spokesperson Alec Slatky informed that aggressive driving is a serious issue all over the United States and that the only way to stop it is through better driver behavior and adopting good community norms.
FAQS
New York has launched "Rewind," a $3 million advertising campaign that targets the reduction of illegal and unsafe driving behaviours by showing in a very clear way how just one choice can result in a tragic crash. The multilingual campaign is in line with the safety objectives of the city's Vision Zero program.
The New York City Department of Transportation on Monday introduced a new vision zero public awareness campaign called "Rewind" which is targeting the behaviors of drivers who are recklessly driving by showing the irreversible consequences of a single bad decision.
"Rewind" is the main idea behind the use of television, digital, and print advertisements, in which, after showing a crash scene, the film is rewound to the point where the driver made the wrong decision. The point they are making is that accidents in real life cannot be undone.
According to NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez, the campaign embodies perfectly the idea that everyday habits behind the wheel can end in tragedy. "The crashes we are talking about here are usually the outcome of a small decision, which changes, dramatically, the lives of the people involved, the victims, and their families," said Rodriguez in his official statement. "The commercials are there to remind the drivers of the fact that they have only one choice to make, which can change everything. There is no 'rewind' in a crash," he added.
For a year, the 3-million-dollar project will be visible in different kinds of media such as television and radio stations, digital platforms, buses, and billboards as well as at numerous sports venues like Madison Square Garden and Barclays Center. Besides 12 languages, the campaign will be available to every resident of the five boroughs. According to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, males are more likely than females to be the cause of serious crashes, hence the advertisement will be more direct with this group of people.
DCAS Commissioner Louis A. Molina said the ads underscore the effect of traffic crashes on the families and the neighborhoods they come from. "Every traffic crash that you see has behind it a family, a community, and a story that cannot be reversed," Molina said. The Citywide Administrative Services Department will continue to support fleet safety and Vision Zero goals, he added.
This effort from the NYC DOT is just one of many to lower the number of traffic fatalities by means of education, enforcement, and redesign of the streets. According to the city, the number of traffic deaths in the first nine months of 2025 dropped by 18 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. Besides the speed and red-light camera programs, the city officials are also attributing the decline to investments in the construction of protected bike lanes and pedestrian infrastructure. These improvements are all funded by the agency's yearly Vision Zero budget of $272 million and its 10-year capital plan of $5 billion.
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso described the effort as one that communicates a very simple and clear message that the road is a dangerous place and that reckless driving is the main cause of people losing their lives. Ben Furnas, the executive director of Transportation Alternatives, brought up the point that approximately 250 New Yorkers die due to the city's traffic crashes every year, and these fatalities can be entirely eradicated just by putting in place safer street designs and ensuring that drivers are held responsible.
In his view, the campaign, as per the CEO of Bike New York, Ken Podziba, is going beyond just pointing out that drivers are the ones who have to make sure the safety of the most vulnerable road users. On the other hand, AAA Northeast spokesperson Alec Slatky informed that aggressive driving is a serious issue all over the United States and that the only way to stop it is through better driver behavior and adopting good community norms.
FAQS
- What is the purpose of the Rewind campaign?
The objective is to show the pointlessness of the acts committed by the drivers by picturing that situations crashing cannot be reversed once they take place. Their goal is to reduce the number of car accidents through the divulgation of this kind of message, where it is clear that in the real world, crashes cannot be fixed.