September 16, 2008
Brooklyn Cycling Deaths Prompt Calls for Changes
The death of 8-year-old Alexander Toulouse, who was cycling with his father in Downtown Brooklyn on September 6th when a mail truck struck him while turning on Livingston Street, didn't come as a surprise to those familiar with the area, the Daily News reports. Michelle Dougherty, a Brooklyn Heights mother of three, calls the intersection "extremely dangerous. Last year I saw a boy who was hit by two cars." Transportation Alternatives spokesman Wiley Norvell agrees that it's "a bad corridor - it's a recipe for crashes and injuries unless something is done to reengineer the street." A DOT rep promises that engineers will now reevaluate the safety conditions there. And more details have emerged on the 50-year-old man who was killed by a school bus while riding his bike in Park Slope days after Toulouse's death: Jonathan Millstein was a lifelong New Yorker and father of two who ran a silkscreen shop with his wife in the East Village.
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It's so hard to look at that boy's picture. I hope they do something and do it right.
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I hate how New York keeps calling itself a "Bike Friendly" city. Every single time I ride I get honked at and yelled at by cars. When I ride on the sidewalk because I fear for my life (e.g., on Queens Blvd.) I get yelled at by pedestrians and harassed by cops. There is limited bike parking. A at least once a month a biker is killed AND NOTHING CHANGES.
I'm terribly sorry for this boy's family. This story is even more painful to read after seeing his picture. Hopefully the city will finally take action.
TransAlt is doing a lot but the city and the DOT need to be involved to make a change.
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New York calls itself a Bike Friendly city? That is the most ridiculous fucking thing I've heard this year.
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I'm carrying pepper spray from now on.
I never encountered so much hostility when I started riding in the early eighties. Cars buzz by inches from you and yelling. good thing I know how to ride and know when to take a full lane.
don't forget your U Lock makes for a good weapon. I had a friend get hit with a two by four over his head, he fought back swinging.
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Of course riding on the streets with cars is dangerous. You can't have that many cars intersecting without accidents. It's damned hard to see adult cyclists, so how much more difficult to see an 8 year old on a bike?
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I always see cars flying around corners. everyone in the city has close calls and a lot have been hit. No one slows down to make a turn anymore. To post #5. You might be able to see them better if you ease on the gas and be a bit more alert.
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I adore bike riding and before I moved to Manhattan it was always my main exercise when the weather allowed. But here? No thanks, I don't want to be really expensive roadkill. People here don't bother to look where they drive. I've seen multiple accidents in 3 years, 2 of which were fatal. One of those fatalities was a bicyclist.
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and here we go again with the bike-bashing/bike-defending/blah blah blah. A father of two died. A young child died. This is a profoundly sad story.
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seriously what the HELL was this father thinking letting his baby boy ride his bike in traffic?
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So if the kid was ugly you'd say "whatever"?
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yes, it IS a very sad story.
I've seen video of the Postal truck driver and he looks very distraught.
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The problem here is that that area of downtown Brooklyn where Adams Street runs is very dangerous to pedestrians, bicyclists and cars. The City bears the blame for encouraging more development while failing to improve the traffic flow in that location.
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