Mark Levine

Update: One of the pedestrians in this crash died from her injuries. She was identified by the Lo-Down as 82-year-old Shu Fan Huang.

Last night, Manhattan Community Board 10 approved the NYC DOT plan to add pedestrian islands and trim traffic lanes on 10 blocks of Morningside Avenue [PDF]. A concerted effort from neighborhood street safety advocates and local elected officials, including City Council Member Mark Levine and State Senator Adriano Espaillat, helped overcome recalcitrance at CB 10, which dragged its feet for nearly a year before yesterday's vote.

On Sunday, Select Bus Service launched on a route that stretches from 125th Street in Harlem to LaGuardia Airport. Public officials marked the occasion -- the first SBS route to debut during the de Blasio era -- at a Harlem press conference today. With off-board fare collection and dedicated bus lanes (on part of the route), the upgrades will speed cross-town trips for 33,000 bus riders daily, on both the M60 SBS route and local routes that will benefit from the bus lanes only.

While Manhattan Community Board 10 refuses to endorse pedestrian safety improvements for Morningside Avenue in Harlem, two lawmakers are urging DOT to move forward.

After an on-again, off-again struggle, Select Bus Service on 125th Street is now close to launching. Off-board fare payment machines have been installed, but not yet turned on, for M60 riders. Next up is striping for dedicated bus lanes, which were scaled back after opposition from elected officials. Now, a glimmer of hope: Council Member Mark Levine says West Harlem could get its bus lanes as soon as this fall.

The deal that brought 125th Street Select Bus Service back to life last fall didn't revive the full, cross-town enhanced bus route that was originally on the table. With the current plan calling for bus lanes east of Lenox Avenue only, bus riders who travel to or from West Harlem would still get the short end of the stick. Freshman Council Member Mark Levine wants to change that.