The Weekly Carnage

The Weekly Carnage is a Friday round-up of motor vehicle violence across the five boroughs and beyond. For more on the origins and purpose of this column, please read About the Weekly Carnage.

Fatal Crashes (3 killed this week, 44 this year, 4 drivers charged*)

• Carroll Gardens: Van Driver Kills Caroline Tunage, 56, As She Crosses Columbia Street (Carroll Gardens Patch, Post)
• Long Island City: Driver Exiting Queensboro Bridge Jumps Curb, Kills Pedestrian, Loses Arm (News, WPIX)
• Upper East Side: Bus Driver Hits and Kills Cyclist Qi Yu Weng (NYT, Post)
• Bronx: SUV Driver Repeatedly Rams Woman’s Car in Stopped Traffic on Major Deegan Expressway; Shot Dead Trying to Outrun Police (News 1, 2)**

Injuries, Arrests and Property Damage

• Staten Island: School Bus Crashes; At Least One Student Injured (Advance)
• Park Slope: SUV Driver Hits and Injures Delivery Cyclist; Police: “The Cyclist Was at Fault” (Park Slope Patch, Streetsblog)
• Midtown: Driver Hospitalized With Serious Head Injury After Driver Slams Into Her (Post)
• Midtown: Cab Driver Crashes Into Columbus Circle LensCrafters (DNAinfo)
• Staten Island: Drunk Driver Crashes Car Twice Before Passing Out (Advance)
• Midtown: Federal Agent Fires on Suspect During Chase Near McDonald’s (City Room, News)
• Midtown: Twice-Convicted Drunken Driver Caught Passed Out Behind Wheel of Stolen Car (Post Blotter)
• SoHo: Rapper Jim Jones Caught Driving in Bus Lane With Suspended License (Post)

In the Region, Out of Town

• Bayonne, NJ: Four-Car Crash Sends Woman, 14-Year-Old Girl to the Hospital (Jersey Journal)
• East Brunswick, NJ: SUV Driver Hits, Seriously Injures Three Pedestrians (Star Ledger)
• West Hollywood: Giants Pitcher Barry Zito Injured in Two-Car Crash (News)
• Detroit: Former NBA Player Jalen Rose Admits He Was Legally Drunk During Crash (CBS News)
• Driver in Crash That Shut Down Central NY Highway Charged With DWI (AP)

Following Up

• Witness Says Driver Ran Red Light in Crash That Killed Queens Pedestrian (Streetsblog)
• Investigators Say Driver in Bronx Bus Crash Was Speeding by 20 MPH (NYT, WNYC)
• US DOT Suspends Bus Company Involved in NJ Crash That Killed 2 and Injured Dozens (Post)
• Cameras Reduce Crashes, Red-Light Running in Newark (Streetsblog)

Other News

• Happy Motoring?  U.S. Traffic Deaths at 61-Year Low, But Decline Trails Other Western Nations’ (NYT)
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Expands Investigation of Repair of Rental Cars (Wheels)
• National Transportation Safety Board’s Recommendations for Buses Include Seat Belts for Passengers, Stronger Roofs (AP)
• State Senate Passes Bill to Increase Penalties on Drunk and Wrong-Way Drivers
• Jimmy Van Bramer, CB2 Chair Support DOT Plans to Shrink Two Long Island City Streets (News)
• Texas DOT Launches “Talk. Text. Crash.” Campaign (PR Newswire)
• Nokia Wants Standard for In-Car Technology to Make Distracted Driving Content “More Universally Intuitive” (Wheels)

*Fatalities within the five boroughs. Information based on latest available reports.

**Due to the cause of death, this incident is not reflected in the weekly figure.