If the Daily News Actually Cared About New Yorkers’ Safety…
Today, Arthur Browne’s Daily News penned another anti-bike editorial, this one blaming cyclists for the cramped conditions on the Brooklyn Bridge promenade and decrying a series of near-miss incidents. Meanwhile, the paper has yet to weigh in on the 164 traffic deaths in New York City through July this year. Here’s what might appear on the Daily News opinion page if the paper ever gets serious about making streets safer for New Yorkers.
Witnessed in recent days on New York City streets:
Scene: Jessica Dworkin, 58, was riding her push-scooter in the crosswalk at Sixth Avenue and Houston Street in Manhattan on a recent Monday morning when a truck driver, operating a vehicle that lacked required safety mirrors and appeared to exceed size regulations, ran her over with his rear wheels. Dworkin was dragged two blocks to her death.
Scene: An unidentified woman was crossing Allen Street at Stanton Street in Manhattan at about 10 p.m. when a garbage truck driver struck and killed her. The driver didn’t even receive a ticket.
Scene: Jermaine Elliot, 26, was crossing Barnes Avenue at East 233rd Street in Wakefield, near his home in the Bronx, when the driver of a truck struck and killed him while turning left. A local resident said that the intersection had long been a dangerous location for people crossing the street. The driver did not stop.
Scene: Luis Ruiz, 81, was crossing Rockaway Parkway at Avenue J in Canarsie at around 9 p.m. when he was hit by the driver of an SUV. He was then struck by a second motorist, who did not stop. Ruiz died at the scene. Two years ago, on the same block, Sarah Parris, 13, was struck and killed by a motorist who was likely speeding but was not charged with a crime.
New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, whose department has refused to devote adequate resources and attention to traffic enforcement and crash investigations, should take a stroll along the city’s dangerous streets one of these days. We would be glad to accompany him. And we are sure he will come to the same conclusion that we have after documenting deaths and injuries on countless occasions.
Too many people have died.
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