A pick-up truck driver killed a pedestrian early on New Year's Eve at a notoriously dangerous Bronx intersection, then left him to die, cops said.
Police say they are searching for the driver of the Dodge Ram that struck Edwin Rivera, 62, as he crossed Broadway at W. 238th Street under the elevated 1 train tracks at around 4:30 a.m. on Dec. 31. The driver slammed Rivera to the pavement, causing severe body trauma, and then fled. EMTs rushed Rivera to the Allen Pavilion, but he could not be saved.
Cops provided no further details about the crash.
Last year on just the six blocks of Broadway between W. 234th Street and Van Cortlandt Park South, there were 27 reported crashes injuring one cyclist, six pedestrians and six drivers, city stats show. Since 2019 on the same stretch, there have been 202 reported crashes, injuring eight cyclists, 23 pedestrians and 32 motorists. It is unclear if the pace of crashes is slowing, however, because in March 2020, the NYPD stopped responding to non-injury crashes, which has lowered the numbers in city databases.
Saturday's crash occurred in Council District 11, which is represented by Eric Dinowitz, who recently opposed an effort to make Riverdale Avenue in his district safer. In 2022, there were 1,659 reported crashes in Dinowitz's district, or roughly 4.5 per day on average, injuring 27 cyclists, 135 pedestrians and 597 motorists, according to city stats.
The Department of Transportation has installed life-saving safety measures on Broadway north of the entrance to Van Cortlandt Park near W. 246th Street, but not in the portion south of that, which includes the portion of Broadway under the elevated tracks where Rivera was killed.
Council Member Dinowitz can be emailed by clicking here. Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson can be emailed by clicking here.
