Last night at approximately 7:15 p.m., an unidentified 18 year-old woman was killed by a truck driver while crossing the street at Rockaway Boulevard and 132nd Avenue in Rochdale, Queens. The driver of the 1999 International truck stayed on the scene and was not ticketed or charged with a crime, though NYPD's Collision Investigation Squad is investigating. NYPD has not released the identities of the driver, pending completion of the investigation, or the victim, pending notification of family.
The victim, who was crossing 132nd Avenue from south to north when she was struck by the left-turning truck driver, was transported in trauma arrest with head and chest injuries to Jamaica Hospital, where she was pronounced dead on arrival, according to FDNY and the Post.
The crash comes just months after a hit-and-run driver killed Carlos Carlo, 65, while he was trying to cross Rockaway Boulevard just five blocks away, at 137th Street. Both fatalities happened on the border of two City Council districts: District 31, represented by Donovan Richards, Jr., and District 28, represented by Ruben Wills.
"Right now, there's not an extreme hazard for pedestrians along that strip," Wills told Streetsblog. "I can't say that this area is an area that has a lot of hazards to pedestrians." He did, however, call on DOT to perform a traffic safety study of the area and install pedestrian countdown clocks.
Sections of Rockaway Boulevard are being repaved right now, Wills added, and he is calling on DOT to bring back an old street design with two lanes in each direction. That section, which is not where the fatal crashes occurred, has fewer travel lanes now thanks to a road diet DOT implemented in 2010 [PDF]. "We're asking DOT not to put those traffic calming measures back in," Wills said. "It caused a lot of confusion; there was a lot of near-accidents."
Both fatal crashes on Rockaway Boulevard occurred in an area with two lanes in each direction and a center turning lane, and are located within the 113th Precinct. To voice your concerns about neighborhood traffic safety directly to Deputy Inspector Miltiadis Marmara, the commanding officer, go to the next community council meeting. The 113th Precinct council meetings happen at 7 p.m. on the third Monday of the month at the precinct, 167-02 Baisley Boulevard. The council does not meet in July and August. Call (718) 712-7733 for information.
To encourage Wills to take action to improve street safety in his district and citywide, contact him at (212) 788-6850 or (718) 206-2068. Richards can be reached at (212) 788-7216 or (718) 527-4356.
