Auto Accidents

Published on: May 8, 2014

In New York City, the number of pedestrians killed in traffic accidents last March was 11, the same number as in March 2013

It’s too early to say if the first Vision Zero measures to reduce traffic fatalities are effective yet. After a decrease of the number of people injured or killed in vehicle accidents in New York last February, the numbers are up again for March 2014 and are pretty much at the same level as they were a year ago according to the most recent statistics from the NYPD

people%20injured%20in%20vehicle%20accidents%20march%202014.jpg number%20of%20people%20killed%20in%20car%20accidents%20in%20march%202014.jpg The number of pedestriandeaths, 11, is exactly the same in March this year than it was in March last year. 952 pedestrians were injured in auto accident this march compared to 990 in March 2013 and 820 the month before. The number of bicyclists injured was also pretty much the same from one year to the other.

Pedestrians%20injured%20and%20killed%20in%20March%202014.jpg bicyclists%20injured%20and%20killed%20in%20March%202014.jpg Bus Accidents were slightly on the rise from one year to the other with 572 accidents in March 2014 compared to 523 in March 2013.

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Published on: May 5, 2014

10 year old pedestrian girl injured after being struck by a Police Car in Brooklyn, NYC

By GGCRBHS&M

A young girl who was crossing Mother Gaston Blvd with her brother was injured after being struck by a police car yesterday night in Brooklyn. The 10 year old pedestrian Tajahnae Price was crossing Mother Gaston Blvd at New Lots Ave in Brownsville when the police car hit her. She went flying through the air and her top teeth were knocked out. She was transported to the Hospital and she is in stable condition.

Children are the most vulnerable pedestrians with middle school youth making up the bulk of injuries and fatalities related to pedestrian accidents involving children younger than 14 year old.

A 9 year old girl died and five other people were injured in a car accident caused by a driver fleeing the scene of another accident in Brooklyn, NYC

By GGCRBHS&M

9 year old Rebecca Ramnarine died and 5 other people suffered personal injury after a reckless driver crashed into the car that Rebecca was riding in with another 11 year old girl and a female driver in Brooklyn, NYC. A third car with 3 occupants was also involved in the crash. According to the media, the driver, 62 year old Kenneth Palache from Long Island, was fleeing the scene of another accident he was allegedly involved in. He ran a red light and crashed into the two other vehicles.

Palache had a suspended license and was arrested for criminally negligent homicide, leaving the scene of an accident and operating a vehicle without a license.

Published on: May 2, 2014

To reduce personal injury and death related to traffic accidents, New Yorkers can now report live any traffic issue in the city trough the new Vision Zero Interactive map

By GGCRBHS&M

Vision Zero is asking pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists to pinpoint dangerous traffic areas in New York City on an interactive map that can be accessed online directly with an email address or through a Twitter or a Facebook account. Pedestrian crash corridors are highlighted in red on the map while all pedestrian fatalities that happened from 2009 till now are indicated by a red square. Unfortunately bicycle accident fatalities are missing on the map. New York road users can share, comment, agree on and pinpoint directly on the map the following type of traffic issues:

– Not enough time to cross – Double parking – Long wait to cross – Red light running – Jaywalking – Poor visibility – Speeding – Long distance to cross – Failure to yield – Cyclist behavior

It is a fantastic tool however there is a risk of distortion. The map was launched a few days ago and we can already see that high poverty areas are typically misrepresented. This can be due to language barriers, less access to technology or maybe less interest in current events. Hopefully Vision Zero workshops in these areas will be helpful in addressing this unbalance. The map shows big areas such as the West Bronx, East Brooklyn and Harlem with with very little activity compared to the rest of the city. Areas of the city where the youngest population live such as Downtown Manhattan and West Brooklyn are the most active areas on the map.

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Published on: May 1, 2014

Crossing guards to be re-assigned at Junction Boulevard and the Horace Harding Expressway, a dangerous Queens intersection where more than 24 people were injured in traffic accidents since 2011

By GGCRBHS&M

To reduce the number of pedestrians injured in traffic accidents and prevent traffic fatalities the 112th Precinct will assign crossing guards at the intersection of Junction Boulevard and the Horace Harding Expressway a dangerous NYC intersection just nearby PS 206, an elementary school.

This is good news for Senator Joseph Peralta who has been calling for crossing guards at the dangerous intersection for more than a year. The school and the parents are relieved.

Speed suspected as the probable cause of a car accident that killed the passenger and left the driver with head and body trauma in Pehlam Garden in the Bronx, NYC

By GGCRBHS&M

A woman died and a man was injured after their car flipped over, hit another car and struck a tree. The passenger, 26 year old Perla Reyes died while the 34 year old driver suffered body and head trauma. The police say speed was probably a factor in the accident. According to NYPD data, unsafe speed is a cited as a factor in an approximately 200 vehicle accidents every month in New York City.

Bronx Bridge built in 1932 listed as one of the top 10 most traveled “structurally deficient” bridges in New York State

By GGCRBHS&M

Everyday around 150,000 vehicles travel on a Bronx bridge that was built in 1932 and that may be about to collapse. The bridge which is the connector carrying the northbound lanes of the Major Deegan Expressway over an abandoned subway track is the oldest bridge listed in the top 10 most traveled structurally deficient bridges in the State in a new report by the American Road and Transportation Builders .

The 9 other listed bridges are all in New York City: 1 is in Staten Island, six are in Brooklyn and two in Queens.

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9 people seriously injured including 3 in critical conditions in SUV accident in Bronx, NYC

By GGCRBHS&M

9 people suffered severe personal injury after a SUV crashed into a wall early this morning at 5:30 am at Exit 13 of the northbound New England Thruway in the Bronx, New York. The driver of the SUV, a Cadillac Escalade from a car service company, lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a wall. The passengers, five men and 3 women all their 20s and 30s were rushed to the hospital.

Mc Guiness Boulevard in Brooklyn where many pedestrians and bicyclists have been injured or have died in auto accidents will be the third 25 MPH Arterial Slow Zone in NYC

By GGCRBHS&M

Numerous bicyclists and pedestrians have been severely injured and several of them have lost their lives in traffic crashes along Mc Guiness Blvd in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. The corridor nicknamed “Hipster Highway” is notorious for passenger vehicles and large trucks speeding. Two years ago a study by Transportation Alternatives showed that two thirds of cars and 62% of large trucks traveled over the 30 mph speed limit with a maximum speed reaching 50 mph for cars and 47 mph for big rigs.

Things should change and residents’ safety should improve by the end of this month as the 1.1 mile stretch of Mc Guiness Blvd between Bayard Street and Freeman Street will become the third arterial slow zone in New York City. New signage will be installed, traffic signals will be coordinated to reduce speeding and the NYPD will increase enforcement on the boulevard.

The creation of 25 arterial slow zones is part of the Zero Vision Action plan to reduce traffic fatalities in the city.

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Published on: April 22, 2014

Starting Thursday, Zero Vison workshops invite New York City residents to discuss traffic safety concerns and help DOT and NYPD in developing plans to reduce the number of people dying or being injured in traffic accidents in their neighborhood

By GGCRBHS&M

To reduce injuries and fatalities related to traffic accidents in all NYC boroughs, the Vision Zero action plan rests on 4 pillars: Law Enforcement, Legislation, Street Design and Public Dialogue.

Involving the communities from the ground up by listening to their specific safety concerns and have the DOT and NYPD work with them to develop traffic safety plans is an important step in having New Yorkers in every borough embracing and promoting the message that traffic deaths are preventable.

7 Vision Zero Town Halls have already been held in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Manhattan and a few more are planned in May and June in the same boroughs as well as in Staten Island.

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