Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Carnage

More Blood Spills in Queens, as Pedestrian is Killed and Driver (You Guessed It) is Not Charged

This is a common scene on Sanford Avenue: A double-parked truck (left) and a big van obscuring pedestrians on the sidewalk as a car driver pulls into a garage. The only way to ensure pedestrian safety in Flushing is to dramatically restrict motorized vehicles. Photo: Google

It's our December donation drive. Your gift helps us do these kinds of important stories. So please click the logo above.
It's our December donation drive. Your gift helps us fight the fight for livable streets. So please click the logo above.

Turns out, Thursday was even bloodier than we originally knew.

Police announced this morning that a Queens senior had died from his injuries suffered when he was hit by a driver — on a sidewalk! — in deadly Flushing.

According to cops, Zhisheng Lin, 67, was walking on the sidewalk of Sanford Avenue just west of dangerous Main Street on Wednesday morning at around 8:35 when he was struck by the 69-year-old driver of a 2008 Volkswagen Jetta as the driver, whose name was not released, made a right turn into a parking garage.

"In the course of doing so, the vehicle operator struck the pedestrian, knocking him to the roadway," the police statement said. "There are no arrests and the investigation remains ongoing."

The driver remained on the scene. Lin was taken to NY Presbyterian Hospital – Queens, where he died the next day. On the same day, at least two other people were run over by truck drivers (neither of whom was charged).

Flushing remains one of the most dangerous places in the city for pedestrians. Flushing, the still-beating heart of anti-cycling Council Member Peter Koo's district, has suffered from 4,802 reported crashes this year — roughly 14 per day in just Flushing alone! — injuring 75 cyclists, 288 pedestrians, and 837 motorists, with two pedestrians and two motorists dying. On an average day in Flushing, three people are injured in vehicular crashes.

Very little has changed since January, when Streetsblog wrote, "Flushing is Most Dangerous Place to Walk in Queens — So Where is Council Member Peter Koo?" to highlight how little the Council Member had done in 2018, when seven pedestrians were killed in his district, all but one in Flushing.

Main Street is the epicenter of carnage in Flushing, which is why many advocates are calling for cars to be banned from the roadway to ease passage for pedestrians and transit users. Koo is not among them.

We've reached out to Koo today and will update this story if he responds.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

On Christmas, Let’s Consider the Successes of the Livable Streets Movement

Here's a short, heartwarming film about the successes experienced this year by the livable streets movement.

December 25, 2024

And the Winners Are…: It’s Time for the 2024 Streetsie Awards!

Let's start our annual year in review series with a broad roundup of the heroes, scoundrels and debacles of 2024.

December 24, 2024

Tuesday’s Headlines: Green Christmas Edition

We got our Christmas presents early yesterday. Plus other news.

December 24, 2024

Congestion Pricing Dream Lives On After Two Judges Rule in MTA’s Favor

New York won two major victories in court on Monday after federal judges declined to put the skids on congestion pricing's Jan. 5 launch — and hinted that they don't think the lawsuits to stop the program will succeed.

December 23, 2024

Streetsblog Year in Review: The Biggest Sustainable Transport News of 2024

It was a busy year in the movement to end car dependency — and there's a lot more to come.

December 23, 2024
See all posts