State Police: Long Island summer crashes at levels in line with recent years

During the unofficial summer season, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, Long Island-based New York State Police troopers responded to 2,180 crashes in Nassau and Suffolk, including 536 involving injuries and five resulting in fatalities.

The numbers appear fairly consistent with crash data from recent years, state police said Wednesday. According to records, troopers responded to 2,200 crashes during the same time period last summer and responded to 2,184 crashes during the same time period in 2022.

Of those crashes, six involved fatalities in 2023, while five involved fatalities in 2022.

State police also said Wednesday that 409 intoxicated and impaired drivers were arrested on state-patrolled Long Island roadways during the 2024 summer season.

A message on the state police website with the latest crash data Wednesday warned that summer may be coming to an end, but "our message will not change. Do not drive under the influence, obey the speed limit, wear your seatbelt, and distracted driving will not be tolerated."

State police arrested 366 intoxicated or impaired drivers during the same time frame in 2023 and 361 intoxicated or impaired drivers during the summer season in 2022, according to statistics.

Of the 2,180 crashes cited by state police during this summer season, 1,639 involved property damage, police said.

Daniel Flanzig, a board member of the Long Island-based nonprofit New York Coalition for Transportation Safety, noted the crash statistics that were released reflect only those investigated by the state police. Other police departments on Long Island handle crashes that happen beyond state roads.

"That's just the state numbers," he said upon being told of the tallies, "that's crazy."

State police said troopers also issued 19,195 tickets between Memorial Day and Labor Day, including 5,202 for speeding, 1,602 for distracted driving and 1,492 for seat belt violations.

In 2023, 18,422 tickets were issued during the summer season, with 5,194 for speeding, 1,282 for distracted driving and 1,419 for seat belt violations. In 2022, troopers issued 20,133 tickets for violations — among them, 5,457 for speeding, 767 for distracted driving and 1,332 for seat belt violations.

Of the crashes recorded by state police in 2023, 514 resulted in injuries, while 1,680 involved property damage. In 2022, 501 of the crashes involved injuries and 1,678 resulted in property damage.

Among the major Long Island roads patrolled by Troop L troopers are the Meadowbrook State Parkway, Northern State Parkway, Ocean Parkway, Robert Moses Causeway, Sagtikos State Parkway, Southern State Parkway and Wantagh State Parkway.

Alec Slatky, a spokesperson for AAA Northeast, which has 6.5 million members in the division, said the high rate of fatalities and crashes on Long Island and nationwide is "a pathology that is uniquely American." 

"What we're seeing nationally is that the numbers of fatalities is declining, but just a bit. We're still at levels that would have been obscene a decade ago," Slatky said, "so it's good that the numbers aren't increasing more, but that's really the only bit of good news. The bad news, when it comes to road safety, is much greater."