Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf is a New York Plaintiff's personal injury law firm specializing in automobile accidents, construction accidents, medical malpractice, products liability, police misconduct and all types of New York personal injury litigation.
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cyclists in New YorkBicycle accidents in New York City have killed more people in 2016 than in previous years. A recent article in the NY Daily News looks back at some of the accidents that occurred this year and how they could have been prevented.

Many fatal accidents took place in areas that have been designated by  Vision Zero  programs to be re-engineered because they were too dangerous for bicyclists and pedestrians. Unfortunately not every community board is pedestrian and bicyclist friendly. Some of the deadly bicycle accidents occurred in areas where community boards rejected Vision Zero projects to make streets safer.

When asked to comment about the steep increase of bicyclists dying in traffic accidents in the city, the Department of Transportation replied that the streets of New York City have never been as safe as Today. Statistically, compared to the estimated number of  daily bike rides, the number of severe injuries or deaths related to bike accidents is at its lowest.  According to DOT calculations cyclists were 72% safer in 2014 than in 2000. The DOT estimated that in 2014 420,000 people were riding a bike everyday in New York City. That is almost triple the amount of  2000.

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NYPDAn NYPD officer riding his motor scooter fell and was injured after he was run over by an ATV rider. The man who ran over him was part of a band of a dozen motorcyclists. The cop and another colleague, on a scooter as well, were responding to 911 calls related to the bikers group riding near the Brooklyn Bridge Saturday around 5:30 pm.

According to the NY Daily News, the group of motorcyclists were riding dirt bikes and ATVs. As they passed the two cops on their bikes one of them fell. One of the ATV riders ran over him. The other cop fell off his bike as well while the whole band fled the scene of the accident.

Both cops were transported to the hospital to be treated for injuries.

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accident locationA 39 year old old man suffered critical injury after he was hit by car in the Bronx, NYC. The accident occurred Saturday night around 3:00 am on East Tremont Ave near Waterbury Ave. The driver of the car, a 28 year old man, remained at the scene of the accident. He was later taken into custody by the police after he was given a breathalyzer test.

East Tremont Ave between Williamsbridge Road and Bruckner Boulevard is one the most dangerous corridors in New York City. According to the NYC Department of Transportation, hundreds of people were injured in car accidents on this specific segment between 2009 and 2013. Among them, 21 people were severely injured or died. Speeding is a major issue in this wide corridor  with undefined moving and parking lanes. Crosswalks are mostly very long diagonals or are simply lacking, making it difficult for pedestrians to cross safely.

In 2015, as part of  the Vision Zero Initiative, the DOT proposed to the Community Board to re-engineer East Tremont Ave to make it safer (see DOT proposal here). The proposal included a reduction from 4 to 2 traffic lines with a center turn lane as well as the construction of pedestrian islands.  The proposal which didn’t include any bike lanes was turned down by the community board. However after a bicyclist died on this segment last June, the DOT by-passed the community board decision and confirmed it would implement the safety measures. (see more in Streetsblog).

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In a previous blog, we wrote about  a bill that would extend NYC pedestrians’ right of way when the countdown clock is in progress at a crosswalk or when the signal is flashing.  This bill was unanimously passed by the City Council on Wednesday.  It was backed by the DOT and by The NYPD  and is expected to be enacted by the mayor as soon as possible.

With the enactment of this new bill, the NYPD and District Attorneys will have no more excuses for not bringing cases against drivers who strike pedestrians while they are in the crosswalk. According to Streetblog, in the past, many cases were not pursued because Section 4-03 of the Traffic Rules of the City of New York stated that “no pedestrian shall enter or cross the roadway” during the flashing “Don’t Walk” phase”.

The new bill intro-997, amends this section of the Rules of the City of New York and establishes the right of way for pedestrians “when a steady walking person, flashing upraised hand, or flashing upraised hand with a countdown clock is displayed on a pedestrian control signal”.

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child in strollerEvery year, thousands of infants and toddlers are diagnosed with traumatic brain injury or concussion after a stroller or carrier accident. A recent study by Erica Fowler, MPH, Christopher Kobe, MD, Kristin J. Roberts, MS, MPH, Christy L. Collins, PhD, Lara B. McKenzie, PhD, MA at the Center for Injury Research and Policy, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, Ohio analyzed strollers and carriers injuries from 1990 to 2010. The study was published in Academic Pediatrics.

The researchers found that over a period of 20 years, 360,937 children below 5 years old checked into the emergency room for an injury associated with a stroller or a carrier. The annual average of injuries was 17,187. However this average number didn’t mean much as the number of injuries significantly decreased over the years.

Most of the time, the injury was caused by a fall or a tip-over of the stroller or carrier.

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New York City has one of the highest rates of traffic fatalities and serious injury in America and in the World. When looking at deaths only, NYC has a lower rate of traffic fatalities than its American peer cities. However when compared to other international cities such as Hong Kong, London or Stockholm, New York is still lagging behind.

traffic fatalities and injuries rates for selected cities
It is time for New York to improve these numbers! The NYC Department of Transportation just released its Strategic Plan 2016. A lot of focus is being directed to traffic safety and protection of bicyclists and pedestrians but is it enough?

Vision Zero continues to be the main program in terms of safety. The goals of the strategic plan 2016 is to integrate the program across all agencies and to improve data and analytics  related to Vision Zero objectives.  Street engineering is planned to continue in every boroughs, on high crash arterial roads and on roads to schools or near senior centers. The campaigns of awareness and education will continue. Among the new initiatives, the DOT will focus on evaluating left turn safety plans and implement recommendations from a previous study on bicycle fatalities and injuries. The DOT will also try to expand the speed camera enforcement which has proven to be very successful. The DOT will also push for mandatory seatbelt use, tougher regulation for drugs while driving, better data sharing with The NYPD in regards to crashes and work on new technologies to reduce crashes.

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accident sceneA 63 year old pedestrian was fatally hit by a car in New York. Barney Pink, an army veteran was crossing Morningside Ave mid-street near 124th street in NYC around 7:40 pm when a car hit him. The driver stayed at the scene of the accident. Barney Pink was rushed to the hospital but he could’t be saved.  Read more in the NY Daily News

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nursing homeDisturbing complaints of nursing home abuse through social media has recently prompted federal health regulators to announce plans to crack down on this type of despicable and abusive behavior.

Since 2012 Pro Publica has identified 47 cases of nursing home employees taking demeaning pictures or videos of residents and posting them on social media.  This reprehensible trend was also denounced by the Washington Post last year.

Posting explicit pictures or dehumanizing videos of nursing home residents is a new form of abuse that is very disturbing and needs to be addressed by nursing home facilities and regulators.

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accident sceneA 12 year old bicyclist is in critical condition after he was hit by a car in New York City. This morning around 7:00 am the young man was on his way to yeshiva. As he was riding his bike near Dahill and Courtelyou roads in Borough Park, Brooklyn he was struck by a car. He was transported to the hospital in critical condition. He immediately underwent surgery. The driver stayed at the scene of the accident. The cause of the accident is still being investigated by the police. Read more in DNA

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crosswalkA new bill may offer better legal protection to pedestrians who are struck by motor vehicles while in the crosswalk. The bill which is supposed to be passed by the City Council this morning will close a loophole in the “Right of Way” law. Introduced by public advocate Letitia James, the bill will give the right of way to pedestrians who  are in a crosswalk when the countdown clock is in progress or when the signal is flashing.

So far the law only gives the right of way to pedestrians during the walk symbol. This loophole occurred because the countdown timers were installed in New York after the law was passed. Therefore drivers who are striking pedestrians during that specific time are not necessarily liable. Hopefully the City Council will correct this dangerous situation Today.

Read more in AM New York

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