The Weekly Carnage is a Friday round-up of motor vehicle violence across the five boroughs. For more on the origins and purpose of this column, please read About the Weekly Carnage.
Roshard Charles, 5, right, was walking with his mother when a driver backed over him and fled. The driver later returned to the scene and was arrested for hit-and-run and reckless driving. Photo: ##http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/18/nyregion/child.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=1##NY Times##
Fatal Crashes (7 Killed Since March 8; 40 This Year; 1 Driver Charged*)
Crown Heights: Roshard Charles, 5, Backed Over by Hit-and-Run Driver While Walking With Mother (Streetsblog)
Sheepshead Bay: Pei Yao Wu, 82, Struck at Intersection With Marked Crosswalks; Driver Ticketed for Careless Driving and Failure to Yield (BNC)
Sheepshead Bay: Marlene Baharlias, 77, Backed Over by in Sidewalk by Driver Attempting to Park (Streetsblog 1, 2)**
Long Island City: Kumar Ragunath, 64, Killed by Hit-and-Run Driver on Northern Boulevard (Streetsblog)
Maspeth: Man Killed by Van Driver Backing Out of Driveway; Driver Issued Summons (TL, DNA)
Long Island City: Cab Driver Vadro Kone, 50, Crashes Into Wall, Other Cab on Queensboro Bridge Off-Ramp After Suffering Seizure (DNA, Post, AMNY)
Greenpoint: Jorge Rios, 47, Crashes Motorcycle Into Car on Manhattan Avenue (DNA)
Injuries, Arrests, and Property Damage
Bed-Stuy: Cab Driver Flips School Bus, Injuring Nine, Including Six Kids (DNA, WCBS, News, Post)
Jamaica: School Crossing Guard Arrested After Backing Into Pedestrian, Fleeing Scene (Post)
Prospect Park South: SUV Driver Crashes Through Fence, Lands on Q Train (News, Post)**
LES: Passenger Injured After Cab Driver Doing 60 MPH T-Bones, Flips Another Cab (News, Lo-Down)
Flatlands: Driver Speeds to Escape Gunfire, Flips and Crashes Into Car Driven by Off-Duty Cop (News)
Hillcrest: Five Injured, Including Two Pinned Under Vehicle, in Two-Car Collision (Post)
Harlem: Cement Truck Driver Crashes Into Elevated 1 Train Structure, Delaying Service (DNA)
Greenpoint: Five Injured After MTA Driver Suffers Stroke, Hits Parked Cars (News, Post, WPIX)
Flushing: Minivan Driver Injured After Crashing Into Building on Northern Boulevard (WNBC)**
Lincoln Tunnel: One Injured in Crash Between Two Tractor-Trailers and Passenger Vehicle (Gothamist)
The Department of Transportation wants the Dangerous Vehicle Abatement Program to simply expire in part because it did not dramatically improve safety among these worst-of-the-worst drivers and led to a tiny number of vehicle seizures.
The capitulation on Fordham Road is the latest episode in which the mayor has delayed or watered down a transportation project in deference to powerful interests.
That headline above is a reference to the last line of James Joyce's Ulysses, which we won't pretend to have read. But we have that ... and other news.