A 55 year old pedestrian died after being struck by the City bus she had just stepped off in Elmhurst, Queens, NYC

A 55 year old woman was killed in a bus accident as she was crossing Astoria Boulevard last night around 10 pm. Melanie Ward exited the Q47 bus on 80th Street just before the intersection with Astoria Boulevard in Elmhurst. She then proceeded to cross Astoria Boulevard in the crossing lines. At the same time, the bus driver made a right turn on Astoria Blvd and hit the victim with the front wheel. Melanie Ward later died from her injuries at the hospital.

According to a Street Blog NYC article by Brad Aaron, the victim seemed to have the right of way and under the new Vision Zero Law (Intro 238) the bus driver should have been charged. However the police told the Gothamist that they could not say if Ward had the right of way and didn’t charge the driver.

Intro 238 makes it a misdemeanor for drivers to strike pedestrians or cyclists who have the right of way. The law has been effective since August 22nd. The police didn’t enforce it against a yellow cab driver who killed a pedestrian who had the right of way on August 29th on the Upper West Side and will probably not enforce it against the bus driver in this case.

Picture and comments: Street Blog NYC