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.

Articles Tagged with pedestrian accident

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Jessica was injured in a car accidentLast Thursday night, Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas in Queens, a well-known advocate for safer streets, became a victim of the very issue she has been fighting against. While crossing 78th Street near 35th Avenue in Jackson Heights, she was struck by a driver, resulting in a broken arm, bruises, and undoubtedly, a shaken belief in the safety of her community’s streets.

The driver, who was making a left turn, failed to yield, knocking González-Rojas to the ground. Although the driver was not speeding, which possibly prevented more severe injuries or fatal consequences, the accident raises significant concerns about visibility and road safety in urban intersections.

González-Rojas pointed out the poor visibility at the intersection, a problem exacerbated by the lack of effective daylighting—a method that improves visibility by keeping corners clear of parked cars. This incident underscores the critical need for such safety measures in urban planning and road design.

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Multiple pedestrians and a cyclist where injured in a multiple-collision crash caused by the driver of a stolen car who was trying to escape the police near Grand Central Station

As car accident attorneys in New York City, we have witnessed numerous devastating cases resulting from reckless driving and accidents. However, one particular type of accident that stands out as particularly dangerous is police chases and we have handled many such cases with excellent results.

The recent incident that occurred on August 1, 2023, where ten people were injured during a police chase in one of the most busy areas of Manhattan, highlights the urgent need to address the hazards associated with these pursuits.

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GSHA pedestrian fatalities reportThe alarming increase in pedestrian fatalities in the United States has reached its highest level since 1981, according to a recent report released by the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA).

The GHSA report reveals that in 2022, at least 7,508 pedestrian died marking a staggering 77% increase since 2010. This tragic statistic signifies not only a significant loss of life but also a growing safety disparity for pedestrians compared to other traffic-related fatalities, which saw a 25% increase over the same period.

Multiple factors contribute to this escalating crisis. Dangerous driving behaviors, inadequate infrastructure, and the prevalence of larger and heavier vehicles all play significant roles in the rising number of pedestrian fatalities. Regrettably, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic witnessed a surge in dangerous driving practices, which have persisted and further jeopardized the safety of pedestrians.

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Car are dangerous to pedestrians and cyclistsAmong rich countries, America is one of the most dangerous for road users especially pedestrians and cyclists.  In The Exceptionally American Problem of Rising Roadway Deaths, an article recently published by the New York Times,Emily Badger and  take an in-depth look at road fatalities in the US compared to other rich countries. They found out that during the Covid19 crisis, most countries in the world saw a decline in fatalities with the exception of the United States, Switzerland and Ireland.  When  comparing national traffic fatalities in 2020 to an average yearly traffic fatalities in 2017 to 2019 , Italy, Hungary, Turkey, Spain, France and Sweden all saw a decline or more than 20% in road fatalities. Italy recorded a 27% decline in traffic fatalities while the united States had a 5% rise in traffic fatalities.

While most rich countries have developed bicycle and pedestrian friendly infrastructures over the last decade, the United States did not do as much

While many countries started to take measures to protect pedestrians and cyclists such as protected bike lanes, lowering of speed limits and adopting safe vehicle technologies such as automatic braking systems, cars got bigger and deadlier in the United States.

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Hit and Run Crashes by State2,049 people died in 1,980 fatal hit and run crashes in 2016 in the US according to a study recently released by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. This is the highest number of fatal hit and run crashes ever recorded in the US. Among the 2,049 people who died in these accidents, 1,229 of them were pedestrians, 169 were cyclists, 380 of them were drivers and 229 were passengers. Since 2009 hit and run crashes increased by an average annual rate of 7.2% per year.

New Mexico, Louisiana and Florida have the highest rate of fatal hit and run crashes per 100,000 people while New Hampshire, Maine and Minnesota have the lowest rate.

Almost 60% of the victims of fatal hit and run are pedestrians with elderly over 80 year old and children under 6 being 50% more likely to be a victim of such accidents. Gender is also a factor. 70% of pedestrians dying in a hit and run accidents are male.

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pedestrianIn Jacksonville, Florida, the police has been issuing hundreds of tickets to pedestrians.  Tickets are not only issued for jaywalking or crossing at the red light but also for crossing at the yellow light or “failing to cross the street at a right angle”.  The police also ticketed pedestrians because they were walking on the right side of the road instead of the left side when there were no sidewalks on both sides of the road. In other cases pedestrians were ticketed for walking on the road when a sidewalk was available.

A pedestrian ticket in itself is not such a big deal however if it is left unpaid it can damage a credit history or lead to a driver license suspension.

In a recent investigation ProPublica asked the sheriff why so many pedestrians were ticketed in Jacksonville. The sheriff replied that his city had one of the highest pedestrian fatality rates in the country and that tickets were the best way  to save lives.

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pedestrian chance of getting killedpedestrian struck by a car driving at 20 mph has a 7% chance of being killed. A pedestrian struck by a car driving at 40 mph has a 45% chance of being killed.  A recent article  from ProPublica explains why decreasing speed in urban areas can make a difference and protect pedestrians from being killed by cars. The article comes with a very interesting interactive chart that shows the chances of pedestrians of different ages being killed by cars driving at any rate of speed.

The chart especially shows how much more dangerous it is for older pedestrians to get ht by a car. It also highlights that after 25 mph the chances of getting killed increase extremely quickly.

This is one of the main reasons why as part of the Vision Zero Imitative to decrease pedestrian death, Mayor De Blasio decreased the default’s city speed from 30 mph to 25 mph.