A string of hit-and-run fatalities of cyclists and pedestrians took place in New York City last weekend, with no arrests. Though in three of the incidents the drivers left the scene, in the last a 37-year-old bicyclist was critically injured when he collided with a Honda Accord at 64th Street and 11th Avenue, a police spokeswoman said.
The cyclist was taken to Lutheran Hospital and the driver was not charged. In two other instances drivers struck and killed or injured cyclists and pedestrians and left the scene, according to news reports.
Yes, anyone can argue that it is technically illegal to mouth off at NYPD, as much as it is required to present ID when breaking the law.
Thus, NYPD may technically have been on the side of the law when arresting one of the most famous celebrities in New York, Alec Baldwin.
But where is the law in protecting cyclists and pedestrians you might well ask. Lest anyone forget, remember that errant taxi driver, Mohammed Faysal Himon, who in an attempt to mow down bicycle messenger Kenneth Olivo for slapping his car, jumped the curb and hit a young woman, resulting in the amputation of her leg?
LOCAL RESIDENTS REACT WITH ‘BLAME THE CYCLIST’, PITY FOR DRIVER
RUSKIN, FL–November 30, 2013
Two Tampa Bay cyclists were killed yesterday in separate incidents, according to the Associated Press.
In the first incident, troopers say 47-year-old Anthony Steven Del Favero “rode his bicycle into the path of a Honda Civic Friday at about 6:30 p.m.”
Del Favero was transported to Tampa General Hospital where he died. No charges were filed against the driver. Jennifer Johnson was the Honda Civic driver. She is 36 and also from Tampa. She was not reported as injured. However, since the cyclist was unable to recount his version of the crash, there was no way to corroborate the driver’s account of what occurred.
In the second crash, Hillsborough deputies say 56-year-old Antonio Leon was struck by a vehicle from behind as he rode his bike Friday at 7 p.m. in Ruskin.
Investigators say the driver fled. The vehicle is believed to be a green 2003 to 2005 Saturn Ion with front end damage. The car may also have blue or silver paint from Leon’s bike.
After an account of the crashes in the Tampa Tribune online, two residents in the area commented that it was about time that cyclists obey the rules of the road, and one “felt sorry” for the driver, displaying once again the ingrown ignorance among drivers of the dangers that cyclist face, and before the outcome of the crash investigation has been revealed.
Wrote Joey Rinaldi Lemieux, of the Florida Metropolitan University, “he was hit by a white suv i saw it on my way to work it was clear and dry what happened i felt sorry for the driver.” And Jerry L Martin, of MoPar University wrote, “D.A. bicyclist. Obey the traffic laws as you expect the motorist to. I hope you have insurance so the innocent party doesn’t have to pay your medical bills.”
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-873-8477.
Cyclists International endorses Gale Brewer to become the new Manhattan Borough President for the City of New York.
Gale Brewer is running for Manhattan Borough President this year. She has a strong record of advocating for cyclists and pedestrians in NYC.
Our reasons are many.
One of the first things we will ever remember is that Gale Brewer showed up for the showing of B.I.K.E., at the Bicycle Film Festival at our invitation–showing an interest in the people who ride bicycles, not just their management.
Her dedication to a core group of the population–cyclists– who are often neglected, scorned, maligned, and often unjustly punished by other New Yorkers and law enforcement, has not gone unnoticed.
Since 2001 when she first became a council woman for the Upper West Side, Ms. Brewer has consistently advocated for cyclists and pedestrians.
“Creating safer streets and reducing conflict among motorists, bikers, pedestrians and other users of scarce street space requires a combination of rigorous enforcement of traffic laws, the innovative use of technology, and well-designed streets, sidewalks and public spaces,” she said.
“As Borough President, I would expand this advocacy and continue to develop new ideas to promote a more pedestrian-friendly city,” said Ms. Brewer.
In her position as council woman for the district that ranges from about West 96th St. to Columbus Circle, Ms. Brewer has not only shown a sensitivity for cyclists and pedestrians, but has also fought tough battles for their rights without ever wavering.
Perhaps Ms. Brewer was just born this way, or perhaps in part because she started her city career working for the Parks Department under Mayor John Lindsay’s administration: Ms. Brewer has consistently managed to turn tough opposition into enthusiastic adherence, or at least acceptance.
Ms. Brewer has been a long time prime sponsor of the legislation to ban motor vehicles in Central Park and Prospect Park loops, through Intro 491-2011. She plans on continuing that fight when she gains office with your help.
Ms. Brewer also has advocated for full reporting on crash scenes, and will be looking for a zero-tolerance policy for dangerous driving, and loss of license for people convicted of multiple dangerous violations such as Driving While Intoxicated (DWI). “After 3 DWI offenses, a person should have their license permanently revoked,” she said.
With regards to Citibike (New York City Bikeshare) Ms. Brewer advocates for increased education for cyclists, pedestrians and tourists.
The council woman was essential in the fight earlier this year by Bike New York, the group that provides bike education for free in the city, to not have to pay a police protection bill of over $1 million for their annual Bike New York (five boro bike tour, see our article on the matter.)
Ms. Brewer also walked a delicate line when presented with pushback from businesses on lower Columbus Avenue against bike lanes that were being installed there, when she supported the lower Columbus Ave. bike lane extension. Notably, progress with bike lanes on the avenue had stopped abruptly on 79th St., sending cyclists into dangerous traffic patterns (see our story on Bike Chaos.)
Always thinking about safety, Ms. Brewer passed several laws that regulate commercial cyclists, including mandating that they be taught the rules of the road and that the rules be posted in commercial establishments. She also pushed for Department of Transportation inspectors to educate and ticket where necessary those businesses that send out bicycle delivery people without bells, lights, vests, and helmets. Those laws not only protect pedestrians, but they also protect the workers.
Working For Pedestrians and Public Transit as Well
Ms. Brewer has also pushed extensively for improvements in pedestrian safety and changes in mass transit that will benefit all New Yorkers.
“We need continued investment in street-calming measures such as dedicated bus lanes, bike lanes, and pedestrian plazas,” she said. “We also need increased enforcement of speeding and negligent drivers, including through the use of speeding cameras and red light cameras.”
Among her achievements as councilwoman, Ms. Brewer has been a tireless supporter of street-calming measures to protect the safety of pedestrians–the biggest mobility device in New York City.
Ms. Brewer was a co-sponsor of Resolution 916-2011 which was adopted by the City Council calling on the NY State Legislature to pass A4327 that would permit a speed camera enforcement pilot program in the city.
She also co-sponsored Resolution 1677 that called on the state to authorize NYC to install 150 red light cameras in the five boroughs.
She was also prime sponsor of Local Law 21 in 2012 that mandates the installation of accessible pedestrian signals for visually impaired pedestrians at major intersections, and won an award from Baruch College for her work for the visually impaired.
Ms Brewer was a prime sponsor of the bill to modify DOT’s performance measures in an effort to help reduce traffic congestion. Local Law 23 of 2008 mandated that DOT release annual reports that track project indicators in the five boroughs, including the effectiveness of engineering, traffic signals, regulatory and pricing solutions, and mobility enhancement solutions.
Ms. Brewer advocated and won a West Side Manhattan Transportation Study to be completed by DOT over her concerns about the effect of major real estate developments and traffic congestion on the Upper West Side.
The study, bounded by West 55th St., West 86th St., Central Park West, and Twelfth Ave/ Henry Hudson Parkway will project how future land uses may generate new traffic trips and affect congestion levels in the area. The study will take into consideration changing demographics, truck deliveries, parking access, buses and subways, pedestrian and bicycle safety, land use, and zoning.
But Ms. Brewer also wants to keep up the pressure on the Mass Transit Authority to deliver comprehensive mass transit for New Yorkers. “We cannot lose sight of the fundamental needs of our subways and buses, which remain underfunded, or the need for pricing auto use to encourage the use of public transit,” she said.
“The MTA needs to get its fiscal ship in order so we can stop increasing subway and bus fares for straphangers,” said Ms. Brewer who will advocate for increased support from the Federal and State government, as well as from the City.
The MTA recently announced an unexpected $40 million in additional revenue, she noted, “funding [that] should be used to restore and enhance service for riders, as a thank you for the multiple service cuts and fare hikes over the past few years.”
“Without a well-financed, well-run transit system that New Yorkers can rely on, we cannot expect people to give up their vehicles, especially outside of Manhattan.”
“Increased investment in bike and bus lanes will also speed up commutes for people utilizing these methods of travel.”
With a Master’s Degree from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, Gale has taught Urban Policy at Barnard College and CUNY colleges across the city, including Baruch and Hunter, for over 20 years. Gale and her husband, Cal Snyder, live on the Upper West Side where they have helped raise 35 foster children – several of whom they adopted and are now grown.
Cyclist deaths in Colorado are up 44% since 2002, but the state doesn’t have enough money to study the issue.
The Denver Post reported Monday that cyclist deaths are up 44 percent and pedestrian deaths are up nearly 10 percent since 2002.
That’s not the only bad news. Though death rates have fallen for motorists, they have risen for cyclists and pedestrians, and even more so in the first quarter of 2013.
“More recently, auto-pedestrian collisions in Denver for the first four months of this year have risen almost 35 percent since the same period in 2010, and hit-and-run cases in the city this year are up 55 percent over each of the previous four years,” wrote the newspaper.
Rollie Heath, chairman of the state Senate’s Transportation Committee, said if good data helps planners prevent traffic deaths, “that’s a conversation worth having.”
But when it comes to paying for it, that’s a different conversation.
“We’re not adequately funding basic repairs on some of our roads,” said the Boulder Democrat. “And we’ve got a lot of needs for the funds we have.”
The data-sharing systems can cost millions of dollars across multiple agencies. And coordinating the effort can be difficult.
Incident shows cycling in India is not safe, but some groups are innovating with GPS devices
By Jen Benepe — March 16, 2013
At at time when India is coming under increasing international pressure to prevent violence against women, a female cyclist traveling in the central Madhya Pradesh region of India was gang-raped by 8 men while her husband was restrained.
Eight men were reported to have raped the 39-year-old Swiss woman who had just set up camp for the night with her husband in the Indian forest. After the assault, the assailants robbed the couple.
The couple were on their way to the tourist destination of Agra, home to the Taj Mahal monument in northern India when they stopped for the night near a village.
The attackers “tied up the man and raped the woman in his presence”, local police official SM Afzal said. They stole 10,000 rupees ($185) and a mobile phone from the woman.
After the assault, the victim who has not been identified, was admitted to the hospital in Gwalior city, local police official MS Dhodee said. The cyclist was conscious on Saturday and speaking to authorities. No other details of her condition were known.
Dhodee said that police were still investigating the case but added that a “rape case has been registered against seven unidentified people,” and 13 men were being questioned in connection with the incident.
Cycling in general does not get high marks from the people who live there. According to one cyclist Srinipartha who is based in Chennai, cycling is not safe in India for a multitude of reasons.
Aside from a careless attitude by drivers for your safety, and dangerous road conditions, he noted that women will be harassed when riding on the road, and that drivers will sometimes aim at them intentionally to knock them down.
A group rode for several days in December 2011 with GPS devices to track them for safety
See his whole entry below:
Hi dirtbikedude, Mediacreations & all,although i had posted a reply abt biking in my city(india), i am stretching it a little bit.Mediacreations, I welcome you to cycle delhi’s streets(with caution) during feb next year(had u ever been on a bike trip b4 in this part?).I am from near deep south from a city called chennai capital of tamil nadu.Sad part is I had never been to delhi and have no plans for a visit in the near future.But i can say a lot about cycling in Delhi and that applies to India in general.India has a population whose attitude towards road safety is the attitude a race driver has and add a whole lot of ego and disregard for other road users.Here are some of the tips that might help:1. India’s roads are the most dangerous, placing it at the top of international list in number of fatalities and grevious injuries(fatalities 90000/year, grevious injuries 200000/year).
2. Delhi tops the list within India, with the most of the culprits from bus and heavy vehicle category.
3. Never expect the other road users to yield or stop at intersections or even at signals, think twice b4 u proceed on recieving a green signal.
4. Any driver who has caused a fatal/grevious accident can bail out the same day, the bail amount in most of the cases being a paltry Rs 1500 & above (US$32) and most of the trials end up with the driver being convicted and fined a paltry amount of the above said magnitude.
5. Twowheelers, cyclists & pedestrians form 60% of road accident victims.
6. If u bring in a bike form your own country, u shud be aware of thefts. Bicycle thefts are most common in india. Geared/sports cycles are especially vulnerable coz the thieves break away with the gear equipment!
7. With the recent boom in mobile phones, its advisable for foreigners to carry one around.
8. Its always hot and humid most of the time, keep adequate amount of fluids handy.
9. One of the most bitter fact is in some of the accidents the drivers responsible for accidents are at greater risk of being severely beaten up by the surrounding public.
Other horrifying fact is some inhuman cops/people take some valubles away from unconcious accident victims.
So its always advisable to carry less valubles/money, keep an identity handy for identification and there are numerous NGO’s helping trauma victims.
10. Besides threat from road users there are death traps in the form of municipal road diggings, dangerous protrusions on pavements, snapped transmission wires, death pits covered with water during rains….
11. LADIES BEWARE, females shud always be aware of sexual harrasments on road in the form of screams, vulgar comments/hand signs and in extreme cases being knocked down by the offender’s vehicle.
I am very sorry for typing this bad about my country, but its the fact. But if u can swim(pedal) thru it then you might see India as it is, a million times different from the organised west.
Regards
srinipartha
In 2011, a cycling Tour innovated by using GPS devices to track all their riders in case of emergencies, or getting lost.
Participants of the BSA-Tour of Nilgiris cycled from December 16 to 23 through the Nilgiris to promote sustainable travel and ecotourism.
The technology allowed the cyclists to use an SOS function for instant help in case of a medical emergency or mechanical failure. Cyclists even knew when they went off track.
The cyclists, and persons in the support vehicles and the ambulance were given GPS tracking devices from Excelfore, a U.S.-based startup with a team in India, which makes automotive products.
Another couple engaged in adventure cycling are now missing in Peru.
Jamie Neal and Garrett Hand, cyclists missing in Peru, last known to board a bus to Cusco.
Peruvian authorities have expressed concern that Jamie Neal and Garrett Hand have been kidnapped, and the U.S. State Department has announced that they will be searching for them.
The couple left for Peru in December from San Francisco, and were last heard from on Jan. 25, according to media reports.
Neal has stopped posting pictures of the trip on Facebook and Hand no longer answers his cellphone.
“Until someone shows me proof that she’s not missing, I don’t believe it,” Jennifer Neal, one of Jamie’s sisters, told reporters.
The couple was last seen on Jan. 26 taking a bus from Cusco to Lima and then getting in a cab, KTVU reports.
The State Department’s website states that traveling on Peruvian roads can be treacherous. Further they write:
Drivers should not travel alone on rural roads, even in daylight. Convoy travel is preferable. … Fog is common on coastal and mountain highways, and the resulting poor visibility frequently causes accidents. Inter-city bus travel is dangerous.Armed robbers, who force passengers off buses and steal their belongings, sometimes hold up inter-city buses at night. Bus accidents resulting in multiple deaths and injuries are common, and they are frequently attributed to excessive speed, poor bus maintenance, and driver fatigue. Because of these safety concerns, the U.S. Peace Corps in Peru restricts American Peace Corps volunteers’ use of overnight inter-city buses and requires Peace Corps volunteers who make inter-city bus trips to use certain bus lines with good safety records. Current approved lines are Cruz del Sur, Linea, Movil Tours, CIAL, OLTURSA, Ormeño, TEPSA, and ITTSA.
The U.S. State Department has made a poster of Neal and Hand, while the U.S. Embassy in Peru’s website posted a travel warning for Americans.
The State Department also notes that the Shining Path, a revolutionary movement that has been active in Peru for years, still targets Americans and other foreigners, and that there have been sporadic incidents in the rural provinces of Ayacucho, Huancavelica, Huanuco, Junin, and San Martin.
