Via Andrew Sullivan (h/t Dave Hoffman), an arresting graphic about how a small difference in speed can multiply severalfold a pedestrian’s likelihood of dying in a car accident:

This is fact that could be played up a bit more by the public safety community. I’m aware of only one locale in the US where this fact is effectively publicized:  New York City. I’m not sure if they’re still up, but the Big Apple had a number of billboards showing a skull superimposed over a child’s face and saying, “At 20 mph, it is likely he’ll survive an accident; at 30 mph, he will most likely die. That’s why the City speed limit is 20 mph.”

Maybe instead of doing idiotic things like banning Segway tours, Mayor Menino could take a page from our friends in New York and have billboards plastered all over the City warning how a little difference in speed can make a big difference in survivability.

This blog is maintained by the Boston car accident lawyers at The Law Office of Alan H. Crede, P.C.