After nearly six months of appeals, the family of Mathieu Lefevre, the bicyclist killed by a flatbed truck driver at an East Williamsburg intersection last October, has received all but one of the answers they have demanding. Yesterday, after denying a motion to allow live testimony by Lefevre's mother, Erika, Judge Peter Moulton listened to an oral argument on whether the NYPD met its obligations to the family under the Freedom of Information Law, and will decide in the coming weeks if family's suit warrants remuneration. more ›

As you may have heard, the rich Park Slope crybabies who hate the popular Prospect Park West bike lane so much that they sued the city are suing the city yet again. They claim the DOT faked data to make the bike lane seem better than it is, and they've got a high-power attorney representing them pro bono, because those are the kind of perks you get when you're married to Senator Chuck Schumer. Their first lawsuit was thrown out because they filed their lawsuit after the statute of limitations had passed. The city had to spend $140,000 in legal fees to get that publicity stunt laughed out of court, and the meter's still running. more ›

A Stony Brook University senior was hit and killed yesterday by a pickup truck and its driver is accused of leaving the scene. 23-year-old Seong Hoon Baek was heading back home from Best Buy when a Ford-350 struck him on Route 347 near Pond Path at around 9:45 p.m. According to police, 30-year-old Michael Tarduno, Jr. was driving the vehicle, and fled the scene. Witnesses gave authorities his license plate number, and he was arrested later that evening. According to the Post, police allegedly found drugs in Tarduno's truck, and he's charged with leaving the scene of an accident and possession. more ›

Police have arrested a man suspected of sexually assaulting women while bicycling in Long Island City. According to the Daily News, "Police collared the man after they spotted him pedaling away from a screaming woman at Broadway and 31st St. in Astoria Tuesday morning, police said. He was captured after he rode through a red light at the intersection," cops said. more ›

Bed-Stuy restaurant Do or Dine, last seen raising the ire of vegans with their foie gras-filled doughnuts, are making waves again today, this time with the local police. We spoke to chef Justin Warner to find out what went down after he got caught riding his tricycle on the sidewalk near his restaurant. more ›

On Monday, cyclist message boards lit up with outrage over the story of a woman who was arrested after supposedly running a red light on her bicycle on Amsterdam Avenue. But it turns out the truth is actually more outrageous: Christina Thede, the cyclist in question, tells us she didn't run a red light at all. Her crime? Criticizing a plainclothes cop who nearly doored her. more ›

The family of a 26-year-old Chinese restaurant deliveryman killed by a MTA bus has spoken out about the tragedy. On Friday afternoon, Qi Ming Weng had apparently fallen off his electric bicycle riding on Second Avenue near 96th Street when a MTA express bus rolled over him, crushing his skull. The Post reports that Weng's relatives are blaming it on the Second Avenue subway construction that is taking up lanes. more ›

The MTA bus that fatally struck a bicyclist has been found. The Post reports that the express bus, which kept going because the apparently driver didn't realize he hit someone at Second Avenue and East 96th Street, "was identified once it arrived at a Yonkers depot earlier this morning after the driver completed his shift." A witness told the Daily News, "The bus was heading downtown. The car swerved in front of the bus. The bus tried to avoid an accident and curved into the delivery guy... He didn't even see him." more ›

A MTA bus and a delivery man on a bicycle collided on the Upper East Side today, leaving the bicyclist dead at the scene. The incident occurred at Second Avenue and East 96th Street just before 4:30 p.m.; the bus driver kept going, apparently not realizing someone was hit, and the authorities are still seeking the bus. more ›

Last week, a police officer was suffered neck and back injuries after his scooter—the kind that looks more like a little golf cart—crashed into a light signal pole in Central Park at West 77th Street and West Drive. The cops told DNAinfo that the light pole "fell on top of the police scooter, causing the officer to lose control of the three-wheeled vehicle and tip it over onto its side." But a runner told a different story. more ›

Police charged a driver with a DWI, plus vehicular assault and leaving the scene of an accident, after he struck a delivery man on Friday night. Ricardo Gonzalez had been biking up Eighth Avenue when he was struck from behind by Clark Gettiner, who was in a Lexus. According to the Post, Gettinger, 40, "struck Gonzalez with so much force Friday night that he was thrown from his bike and skidded 20 feet down slush-soaked Eighth Avenue before ending up beneath a double-parked BMW." more ›

A 28-year-old delivery man on a bicycle was struck by two cars in Manhattan last night. First, a Lexus struck him from behind at Eighth Avenue and West 47th Street around 10:15 p.m. A witness told the Post that the driver "rammed into the 28-year-old bike rider near 47th Street with an impact so violent that the cyclist's head knocked out the windshield on the passenger side." In spite of that, the driver did not stop and kept going. Then the delivery man was run over by a BMW SUV, whose driver stopped and remained at the scene. Update: It turns out the bicyclist was thrown under a BMW SUV, which was double parked. more ›

We received reports this morning that a cyclist was fatally hit by a car in a hit and run around 4:30 a.m. near the Atlantic Avenue on-ramp to the BQE, and now WABC is reporting that the cyclist was actually riding ON the BQE. The NYPD could not confirm any details to us at this time, but WABC says the unidentified male victim was hit in the westbound lanes of the BQE by a vehicle that drove away. The cyclist was then hit by a second vehicle and pinned underneath until first responders could get him out. That second driver stayed at the scene, and EMTs rushed the victim to Long Island College Hospital. more ›

Today the NY Times visits the bedside of blinded cyclist Emilie Gossiaux, a 21-year-old Cooper Union student who was nearly killed when an 18-wheeler ran her over in Bushwick in October. Gossiaux was blinded from the trauma, and she's focused on regaining her sight, "They told me that there was a very small chance, but if there’s a chance, then I’ll believe in it, and I’ll have hope in it." However, while the article looks at her strength of spirit, and her family's and friends' support, it doesn't mention what happened to the driver behind the tragedy. more ›

Today the NY Post, citing city statistics, reports that there have been 3,830 accidents involving bicycles, including 12 fatal ones, so far this year, compared to 3,294 in 2009. The tabloid asserts there's been "an alarming 16 percent spike in vehicle and bicycle collisions" over the past year—and we all know whose fault that is! Two unidentified NYPD sources and a UPS driver get at the heart of the problem. "This was a catastrophe in the making as soon as they put those bike lanes up around the city," says one anonymous cop in the East Village. "They are arrogant. They think they now own the road and think they can do no wrong. Some even yell at police cars saying they have the right of way." Arrogant, self-righteous and obnoxious? Are we sure this cop isn't referring to cyclists like these? more ›

News flash: Many drivers use bike lanes as de facto parking or driving lanes, and the cops don't do anything about it. That's the takeaway from a new report issued by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, who sent staffers to monitor eleven Manhattan bike lanes during recent morning and evening rush hours. What they found may not shock you—except that they actually witnessed two motorists get ticketed for blocking a bike lane! Of course, another 273 drivers were seen blocking bike lanes with impunity, as usual. more ›

The Post follows up with some more details about the horrible crash in the East Village early Sunday morning that involved a taxi cab hitting an SUV and ending up in The Bean coffee shop at First Avenue and Third Street. Five people, including a 71-year-old man sitting on the bench outside, were injured. Here's how the Post explains the incident: more ›

WABC 7 reports that a bicyclist was critically injured in a hit-and-run last night: "The victim, a 45-year-old man, was struck while biking on Second Avenue at East 59th Street just before 11 p.m. Police say the truck that struck him did not stop and continued down Second Avenue." The cyclist was taken to New York Presbyterian Hospital; police are investigating the incident and interviewed witnesses. more ›

At around 12:30 a.m. earlier today, a 16-year-old bicyclist was struck by a driver at Webster Avenue and East 188th Street in the Bronx. And the driver was a 23-year-old woman who didn't have a license. WABC 7 reports that the teen was critically injured and taken to St. Barnabas Hospital; the driver had a non-life-threatening injury and was also hospitalized. Also, the driver received a summons for driving without a license. more ›

Patrick Pogan, the former NYPD officer who was caught on tape in 2008 violently shoving a cyclist off his bike, seemingly without provocation, faced up to four years in prison for a felony conviction of filing a false criminal complaint against cyclist Christopher Long. But yesterday Justice Maxwell Wiley (a Pataki appointee) sent a clear message to all those following the high-profile case: Lying cops suffer no consequences. And the "sentence," a "conditional discharge" which set no conditions, was even more lenient than Pogan's lawyer, Stuart London, had recommended. more ›

Christopher Long, the bicyclist shoved by a police officer during a 2008 Critical Mass ride, was at last night's Critical Mass ride. This comes just a day after the verdict that found former cop Patrick Pogan guilty of falsifying records but not of an assault on Long. Long said, "I don't think Pogan ever intended to assault me so I am not disappointed at all with the verdict. I think it suits the events to my liking," adding, "I do hope that we can all just chill out." more ›

The NYPD has been cracking down on bike riders who pedal on sidewalks in Chelsea and Gramercy. They issued 43 summonses in those neighborhoods during the last month, and about 90 percent of those ticketed were restaurant deliverymen, a police source tells the Post. The fine for riding on a sidewalk is $100. more ›

Bronxville police questioned a bicyclist about the death of a 15-year-old teen whose body was found on a street last week. Mihoko Fukuzawa died of internal bleeding, but since it's unclear whether she slipped or was the victim of foul play, police sought a bicyclist seen on surveillance footage. The Journal News reports that the bicyclist, an Albanian, did see the girl's body but didn't stop because of his limited English. He also reportedly said he saw another person already asking the girl if she was okay. The police chief said, "We do not believe he had any contact with her or that she was startled by the bicyclist. Something else caused her to fall." more ›

The body of a 15-year-old girl, who was mailing a letter, was found outside a Bronxville church on Wednesday morning. At this point, police suspect Mihoko Fukuzawa slipped and died of internal bleeding—Police Chief Christopher Satriale said, "We don't believe it was an attack"—but they are seeking a bicyclist seen in a surveillance video. more ›

We've heard about driver vs. bicyclist fights before, but Streetsblog has a really unusual one. Unusual because the bicyclist was charged with criminal mischief for slapping the side of the SUV! From Streetsblog:

[Ray] Bengen, 63, was riding down the Ninth Avenue bike lane on May 21 when he came across the Ford Excursion you see in this photo (curb weight: 7,190 lbs). A long-time city cyclist, Bengen had a green light and wasn't quite sure what to make of the vehicle in front of him. The car wasn't moving and its brake lights were off.

Some followup to a bicyclist's accusations that an SUV driver rammed into him in Central Park, which Gawker first reported: The Daily News reports that the police are investigating Brian Dooda's claims that he was "dragged more than 200 feet" by Don Broderick's SUV, adding, "Sources said a detective spoke to Dooda Tuesday but it was not yet known if charges would be filed against Broderick." The News, of course, notes Broderick's employment history—he's a "former New York Post reporter who now works for Rupert Murdoch's" Fox News—but notes the 53-year-old driving record is clean. But now Gawker says Broderick was once suspended for "assaulting a Fox co-worker...roughly ten years ago in the Fox newsroom." Streetsblog says the city's policy of keeping cars in Central Park's loop is to blame (the city has reduced car hours a little), "Until officials summon the small measure of political will needed to return the loop road to its rightful users, it will continue to be a contested street to which both drivers and park users believe they have a righteous claim. And the next Brian Dooda may not be so lucky." And Dooda offered one idea for Broderick's punishment to the News: "He has to ride a bike through Manhattan in rush hour." more ›

Transportation Alternatives, which advocates for "bicycling, walking and public transit as the best transportation alternatives," has this interesting graph in the new issue of Street Beat. It shows how more bicyclists have led to better safety:

New data now reveals that there are 185,000 daily cyclists in New York City, an increase of more than one third from just four years ago. This staggering surge is not only a testament to the infrastructure improvements that have been implemented in the last couple of years, but also a contributing factor to the increased safety of cyclists throughout the city. more ›