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| photo by Danny Iudici |
It's too early to say what caused the crash definitively, but vans were involved, speeding was involved, and it was a hit and run. Another example of reckless lawlessness on the Flabenue that simply MUST be addressed. We all know how crazy the street can be; it's time for some real action. Enough bitching on blogs (I stand accused); more full-throated demands of the DOT and NYPD.
It's not like elected leaders and DOT officials haven't heard this from us before. One concerned citizen in particular even took it upon himself to draw up some maps of how traffic could be calmed. By the DOT's own admission, this is a corridor that needs to be examined, and they promised just last spring to look at it this fall. The time is now. The Q will let you know if there's any official response.
15 comments:
This is awful news. I forwarded your post to my contact at Dr. Eugene's office.
This is my corner, and I'm not surprised something like this would happen at all. There's no traffic light on the corner of Flatbush and Hawthorne, so people in the crosswalk are always exposed, and crossing Flatbush is a very high-stakes game of Frogger. What sort of calming measures would work on a straightaway like this?
This is probably a dumb question but are the dollar vans legal and licensed by the DOT?
Yes. If you get into a legit dollar van you will see an ID number and Passenger Van bill of rights; many of those rules aren't followed, but hey it's a Dollar Van.
Some legit drivers are very responsible, in my experience. Some are way not. Even more troubling is the fact that many bogus vans pick up passengers, so caveat emptor.
Personally, I love/hate Dollar Vans. They save my arse when I'm late, but they are frequently reckless beyond compare. What we need, in my opinion, is a set of speeding cameras (they exist and are being tested - conservative Albany legislators think they're an infringement on rights and are only allowing pilot programs) and a traffic cop stationed at different spots to stop reckless drivers. I don't think it's that hard. Flatbush from Grand Army Plaza is relatively orderly, and I've noticed that even the Dollar Vans drive better there. Coincidence? No way.
No surprise here. I've narrowly avoided being hit by the dollar van numerous times.
Dollar Vans are a menace but so are half the other cars on the road. So honestly I get very concerned when I see the focus jumping solely to Dollar Vans because it's traffic calming for ALL that will truly make the streets safe. Not outlawing some vans. I can't believe that about certain lawmakers crushing efforts to get cameras. They're literally killing people by doing that. Selfish aholes.
Those lawmakers are thinking of their car-loving constituents (and there are a lot of them right here in PLG) who actively oppose cameras because they know they couldn't continue their reckless ways. And I completely agree - it isn't just the dollar vans. Cars go horrifyingly fast on Rogers Ave., which has no dollar van traffic, just a bunch of speeders. Turing Rogers into a 2-way street a la Bedford would go a long way towards slowing things down. Perhaps when the B44 becomes an SBS route and is moved over to Rogers from NY things will slow down there - we can only hope.
Also, there are far fewer dollar van customers after GAP on Flatbush, as the final stop for most of them seems to be Atlantic Terminal, so you don't have the frantic, sudden land crossing and speeding to pass other vans and buses.
*lane
flatbush is frightening! i was very nearly hit crossing with my daughter at winthrop this morning. and i was in the crosswalk and had the light. the driver did pause long enough to yell nasty things at me. the point i mean to make is that many drivers in our area adopt a reckless/dangerous attitude of entitlement, and simply gamble with safety in the desire to get there a few seconds faster. i am always cautious around here, as are many of our neighbors, but it really isn't enough. i'm sorry- i guess i'm just venting because i don't have any super ideas on how to fix it, i'm just tired of almost getting hit at least once a week in my neighborhood. FROGGER INDEED.
Well just like drug dealing it's something these people know they won't get busted for here. It's a lawless situation.
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/police-question-man-connection-fatal-brooklyn-hit-and-run-article-1.1153125
Funny how when a pedestrian gets killed, people here are concerned. But when it's a cyclist, there's all kinds of tsk-tsking at the cyclist, blame-absolving of the driver, and huffing and puffing about cyclists breaking laws, even though I've never noticed much in the way of legal obedience from NYC pedestrians.
To paraphrase this post and its comments:
http://theqatparkside.blogspot.com/2012/06/tragic-cycling-death-at-empirebedford.html
I think this was an accident, pure and simple. Also, why wasn't the pedestrian wearing a helmet? When I see people walking without them, it always seems dangerous.
I don't think finger pointing is appropriate after an accident takes someone's life. And non-witnesses to the event should probably withhold judgment. However, the press reports in these cases suggested drag racing by Dollar Vans, vs. a legally turning truck that didn't see a bicyclist. There is a world of difference there, in my view. I didn't see any indication that the pedestrian was jaywalking. I didn't see any reports that the bicyclist had run a red light. So yes, peds and cyclists are often reckless too - point taken. They just don't happen to be carrying hundreds of pounds of metal along with them. It is my personal belief that drivers must be held to the highest standards, for that very reason. Give me cameras, tickets, enforcement, and smarter DOT designs. Decent and careful drivers have nothing to fear by these changes.
EVERYONE please attend the Community Board Meeting on 9/24 at 7p at Middle School 61 at 400 Empire Blvd. The council members need to hear these concerns. Clearly the situation is out of control. Both the Dollar Vans and regular drivers practice reckless behavior because they are confident that there's minimal enforcement. Is it normal to have regular red light running, speeds topping 50 mph, lane dodging, driving on curbs, driving against traffic due to impatience to make left hand turn on Maple, bullying of pedestrians at cross walks?
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