A Bronx cyclist was killed in a hit-and-flee crash late Friday night, cops said, on a roadway that cyclists fear.
According to police, the bike rider, whose name was not immediately released, was cycling on Southern Boulevard inside Bronx Park at around 11:20 p.m. Near the on-ramp to the southbound Bronx River Parkway, the driver of a 2019 Mercedes Benz sedan that was "traveling at an apparent high rate of speed" tried to overtake the cyclist, but "did not have space to go around" him, cops said.
The Benz driver instead hit the cyclist from the rear, sending him flying backwards, first into the windshield of the Benz, and then onto the pavement. He suffered severe trauma to his head and body and died at the scene.
Meanwhile, the driver of the Benz pulled his car over and fled on foot, witnesses told police, according to a police source. He has not been apprehended.
Southern Boulevard has a protected bike lane between Fordham Road and Moshulu Parkway, but north or Moshulu, cyclists are are encouraged to ride between Bronx Boulevard and Moshulu Parkway inside the park on the Moshulu Parkway Greenway. Whether this cyclist missed the turn, or simply opted to stay on Southern Boulevard during a low-traffic period is unclear.
Friday night's victim is the sixth cyclist to die this year in the city, though one, a Bronx cyclist who died earlier this month, apparently fell off her bike without any contact from another vehicle.
The crash was fairly close to where cyclist Heather Lough was killed by a truck driver in 2016.
