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Articles Posted in Bicycle Accidents

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the truck that struck the bicyclistA bicyclist suffered critical injury after being struck by a tractor trailer truck in New York City.  The accident happened yesterday morning around 7:15 am at the intersection of Jay Street and Tillary Street in Brooklyn. According to Streetblog the truck struck the bicyclist while making a right from Jay onto Tillary. The victim, a 35 year old man, got stuck under the truck.  His left leg was completely mangled and  he suffered massive head trauma according to the NY Daily News.  He was transported to the hospital in critical condition.

The truck driver stayed at the scene of the accident and hasn’t been charged. The truck was a tractor trailer truck belonging to Mountain Man Sand and Gravel. The truck was on an authorized truck road however it was larger than 55 feet long. Trucks larger than 55 feet long are only allowed in New York City if they transport material that is “non-divisible” and have special authorization. In the case of this accident, the Gothamist indicates that the truck was a Mac trailer Dump truck.  There is a high probability that the truck was not legally authorized to drive where the accident happened. This is the second time this year that a bicyclist has been struck by an over-sized truck driving in a pedestrians and bicyclists area. In April, a cyclist died after being struck by a tractor trailer truck which was illegally driving in a Brooklyn residential area (see previous blog).

Jay Street is considered one of the most dangerous streets for bicyclists in New York City. Recently, the DOT started to remodel the street and add protected bike lanes. However at the intersection of Jay and Tillary protective bike lanes are still nonexistent. Since the beginning of the year, 3 people were injured in bicycle accidents at this intersection according to Vision Zero Map. Also according to data from Transportation Alternatives there were 41 pedestrian and bicyclist accidents at this location between 2002 and 2011.

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25 people died and 5,383 were injured in motor vehicle accidents in New York City last August. During this month, the NYPD recorded a total number of 19,388 traffic accidents. Motor vehicle accidents have been on the rise in New York City over recent years. From 16,729 in August 2013 the number of accidents steadily increased to 17,000 in August 2014 and  18,862 in August 2015. A monthly record was reached last June with 20,362 accidents.

NYC traffic accidents August 2016
In an attempt to reduce the number of deaths related to these accidents, New York The de Blasio administration launched Vision Zero at the beginning of 2014. Since then, the number of fatal traffic accidents has been on a declining trend despite an increase in the total number of crashes.  After reaching a monthly record low of 11 in March 2016, fatal traffic accidents spiked again to 29 last June and 25 last August.

NYC traffic accident deaths August 2016
While Vision Zero may have helped in curbing the number of deaths on the road, the number of people injured in motor vehicle accidents in New York City continued to rise over in recent years. In August 2013, 4,846 people were injured in NYC traffic accidents. This number decreased slightly in 2014 to 4,445 before increasing again in August 2015 to 4,737 and reaching almost 6,000 in August 2016.

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A bicyclist may need a leg amputation after he was struck by a truck in New York. The 30 year old man was riding his bike South on 8th Ave in Manhattan, NYC, around 3:30 am Friday. As he crossed West 40th Street, a commercial truck slammed into him. The truck driver didn’t stop. He just continued on his way. The cyclist was left bleeding in the middle of the street. A witness working at a nearby Duane Reade saw the accident. He told the NY Daily News that the truck was speeding when he hit the victim. The man was transported by ambulance to the hospital. He suffered serious head and leg injuries. His leg may be amputated. The police are still looking for the hit and run driver.

Previously several people reported on the Vision Zero Input map that vehicles were failing to yield at this specific location. So far 4 people were injured in 2016 at the intersection of 8th Ave and 40th Street.

Failure to yiled reported at accident location

Picture source: Vision Zero Input Map

 

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daLeft turn accidents in New York City kill or severely injure pedestrians and bicyclists 3 times more than right turns. These findings are part of a study focusing on left turn crashes that was recently released by the NYC DOT.  As part of Vision Zero, the DOT carefully analyzed 1,105 crash reports over a period of 5 years.

The most dangerous intersections for left turns are those when a vehicle is turning left from a one lane and one way street onto a two way and two lane street wider than 60 feet. When a driver makes a left turn in this type of intersection, his visibility of pedestrians is limited. Additionally, the driver often pressured by traffic behind him, has to find gaps between the incoming traffic and the pedestrians crossing.

The study also found that victims of left turn accidents are mostly pedestrians with a median age of 67. They are most commonly hit by cars, vans or pickup trucks.

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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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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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Bicyclist and Pedestrian safety rideSo far this year 16 people were killed in a bicycle accident in New York City. This is the highest number of bikers killed over a period of 8 months in the city.  As bicycling is becoming more and more popular in New York, it is important that bikers feel safe when they ride. Pedestrians also are at increased risk of fatal accidents. 74 people died while walking in the streets of New York. Another worrisome problem is the growing number of hit and run fatal accidents. 28 people were killed by hit and run drivers since the beginning of the year. This is higher than the total number of people killed by hit and run drivers over the complete year of 2015.

This Thursday Please join Transportation Alternatives, Families For Safe Streets, Right of Way and Kidical Mass BK  to ride together to demand streets safe for biking and walking. The meeting point is at Fountain of Pamona at East 59th Street and 5th Avenue in Manhattan at 6:00 pm. The ride will start at 6:30 pm.

Riders want to send a message to Mayor de Blasio that “This is enough” ! Too many bicyclists and pedestrians have been killed or injured in traffic accidents in New York City this year and it has to stop.  Mayor de Blasio is not doing enough to make New York City streets safe. After improving during de blasio’s first two years as mayor, the number of bicycle and pedestrian accidents are increasing again. This Thursday riders will ask the mayor to take immediate action to fast track projects related to the construction of protected bike lanes and safeguarded pedestrian crossings in areas that have been designated priority areas by Vision Zero.

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Jay Street before after protected bike laneBetween 2010 and 2014, one bicyclist died and 270 people were injured on Jay Street in Brooklyn NYC. The Jay Street bike lane was voted the most dangerous bike lane in Brooklyn by the readers  of the Brooklyn Paper in 2012. Last month the New York City Department of Transportation finally installed a protective bike lane on Jay Street. The bike lane which is protected by parked cars, increases bicyclists safety. However since its installation some motorists are still driving or parking on the protective lanes and the police are not doing much to prevent them from doing so. Barriers or bollards would be the best way to keep all car traffic out of the lane. According to commuters using the lane on daily basis, the protective bike lane makes it easier to commute but it is still not a place to safely bike with a family. Read more in the Brooklyn Paper . Also read additional proposals to improve  cyclists safety on Jay Street here and provide your personal input here.

Illustration: NYC DOT implemented proposal for Jay Street Protected Bike Lane

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accident sceneA bicyclist died after being struck by a minivan in NYC early Monday morning. The man was riding his bike on the left shoulder of the eastbound Grand Central Parkway near 111th Street in Corona, Queens. At one point he swerved into the traffic. He was hit by a minivan. The cyclist died at the scene of the accident. The driver of the minivan stayed at the scene of the accident. He wasn’t charged.

In New York City, bicycles are prohibited on highways. It is unclear why the bicyclist decided to use the highway. The investigation is ongoing.

Read more in DNA

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NYPDA teenager was seriously injured in a bicycle accident involving a police car in Brooklyn, NYC.  The 14 year old boy was riding his bike with a group of friends in Bensonhurst yesterday night around 9:15 pm. As they were riding by 18th Ave and 78th Street, a marked NYPD car headed their way. The police car was responding to an assault nearby and its lights and sirens were on. According to the cops, the group of teens moved to the side with the exception of one. The cops said that the driver tried to avoid him but the teenager “fell onto the car”. The young bike rider was transported to the hospital with serious injury but in stable condition.

Read more in the NY Daily News