Traffic accidents happen all the time in NYC—but why? WHY? In a groundbreaking poll, Marist asked 866 New Yorkers which they thought caused the most accidents in the city: people driving cars, people riding bikes or people walking. Their answers may not shock you! more ›

Earlier this morning we received reports that a pedestrian—possibly a school crossing guard—was likely to die after being hit by a truck on the Upper East Side. Now City Room reports that the victim has died, and it turns out it wasn't a crossing guard, but rather a 75-year-old man who was hobbling around on crutches and wearing a reflective vest. A statement from the NYPD press office describes what investigators believe happened at the intersection of First Avenue and 89th Street: more ›

A man was struck and killed by a car as he attempted to cross the Bruckner Expressway early this morning. Police responded to a 911 call on the expressway in the vicinity of White Plains Road at around 5:20 a.m. and found that a 36-year-old man had been attempting to cross the expressway from the south end to the north, and was hit by an eastbound 1998 Toyota Camry. The man was transported to Jacobi Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. The driver was also transported to the hospital and treated for minor injuries. No criminality is suspected, and the investigation is ongoing. more ›

Over the course of this weekend a pedestrian was killed by a driver charged with DWI, a cyclist was killed by a hit-and-run driver, two teenagers are in critical condition after being struck by a hit-and-run driver, a woman was in serious condition after being hit by a curb-jumping livery cab, and a deaf boy was left brain-dead after being struck by a vehicle. "All of these tragedies were preventable," Transportation Alternatives communications coordinator Joseph Ferris told us. "The NYPD and district attorneys must do more to stop this scourge of crashes." more ›

We're often accused of wielding a cyclist slant here at Gothamist, so allow us to give you an unfiltered perspective from one cheery Staten Island motorist. The Staten Island Advance pointed us in the direction of YouTube user "we5leyz," who has a camera mounted on his dashboard that captures him blowing his "train horn," cursing at jaywalkers as he speeds through intersections, and making illegal U-turns. more ›

The Department of Transportation will announce initiatives to improve safety along Delancey Street at a special meeting of Community Board 3 tonight. Four people familiar with the project told DNAinfo that the changes will include wider sidewalks, different signal timing, and improved traffic patterns. "We're going to see significant safety improvements on Delancey Street in months, not years," State Senator Daniel Squadron said. "This is a quick and dramatic proposal." more ›

Is Governor Cuomo the new Joe Biden? Or, let's rephrase that, did Governor Cuomo inherit our Veep's drivers? Because for the second time in two days his drivers have gone and hit pedestrians near the home he shares in Westchester with Semi-First Lady Sandra Lee. more ›

From 2004 to 2011, the number of people who have died or were injured while walking and wearing headphones rose from 16 to 47. The Guardian points us to a new U.S. study, published by Injury Prevention journal, which notes that most victims were men under the age of 30 (around 68% in both cases). 89% of the 116 total incidents occurred in urban areas, with 55% being struck by a train. Looks like these numbers are pointing directly at us, NYC! more ›

[Update Below] An unidentified man was struck and killed by two drivers while walking on Borinquen Place in Williamsburg earlier this morning around 6 a.m. Details are still emerging about the cause of the crash, but the FDNY confirms that the victim was pronounced D.O.A. and that he was hit twice by two different vehicles. The NYPD press office tells us that at this point, "no criminality is suspected." One local resident sent us the photo below, and describes the grisly scene near South First Street: more ›

Remember last month, when a cyclist was really pissed that another cyclist locked in his bike, so he made a video about it? Well, apparently that same guy, Casey Neistat, has a penchant for making videos about small-scale street annoyances, and he's back with a new one focused around the hidden dangers of texting while walking. more ›

Following the news of marked improvements for pedestrians and cyclists traveling around Grand Army Plaza, the DOT has announced [pdf] new improvements around Prospect Park's southeast entrance, including closing the East Drive entrance to automobiles. According to the agency, 20 people are injured at this corner every year, and Streetsblog notes that closing the entrance allows for a realigning of the crosswalks, which "should make motorists more aware of people walking across the street." 57% of the crashes between pedestrians and vehicles at Ocean and Parkside between 2005 and 2009 occurred when the pedestrian had the walk signal. more ›

In keeping with the tabloids' "fresh" narrative concerning the battle in public parks between heartless cyclists vs. vulnerable pedestrians, the Daily News visited Prospect Park with a radar gun last weekend and "clocked bikers going as fast as 31 mph—even through a red light at a crosswalk." And like the NYPD, they have no respect for journalism: " 'Move from here! Move from here!' one cyclist clad in racing gear yelled at a reporter who was not even in a bike-only lane." more ›

In July, a driver with a suspended license was quickly backing up on Amsterdam Avenue to score a parking space when he ran over two women crossing the street at West 98th Street. Yolanda Casal, 78, was pronounced dead at the hospital while the other woman, her 41-year-old daughter Anais Emanuel, was hospitalized with injuries. Shortly after the incident, a witness told the Post, "They had the right of way and that guy just kept backing up. He was trying to get that spot." Now Streetsblog reports that the driver, 38-year-old Edwin Carrasco of Paterson, New Jersey, did not get off scot-free—he'll have to pay $500 as punishment. more ›

Since September the city has had pedestrian safety managers on each of the East River bridges, an experiment set to end on November 26th when the DOT will review the $80,000-a-month program. But as far as the cyclist-hating Post is concerned, the program is already a total dud. They say that commuters have already decided the program isn't working, while quoting one cyclist, who had, according to their report, one collision. Now, we've been a bit skeptical of this whole thing ourselves, but just to be sure we decided to head over there yesterday to see what some of those glorified crossing guards had to say for themselves. more ›

A woman remains in critical condition after a car that was attempting to back into a Midtown parking space, jumped the curb onto the sidewalk and pinned her against a building. The incident occurred around 9 a.m. in front of the Seasonal Restaurant and Weinbar, at 130 West 58th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues. more ›

It's going to be a tight squeeze for cyclists and walkers on the Williamsburg Bridge starting June 13th, when the DOT will block off the south side pedestrian path for six weeks in order to install new roadblocks at the entrance near South Sixth Street. The roadblocks are intended to "prevent small cars from plowing through the entrance to the bridge’s cycle path," the Brooklyn Paper reports; we imagine they'll resemble the bollards that were recently raised on both sides of the Manhattan Bridge bike entrance. more ›

The City Council unanimously voted to pass a package of traffic bills yesterday that finally requires the city to collect data on cyclist and pedestrian accidents. Previously, the city had no method for collecting these stats. One bill in particular, TrafficStat, was born out of a tragic event that happened two years ago when Nancy Gruskin's husband, Stuart, died after colliding with a cyclist that was riding the wrong way in midtown. His death prompted Nancy to create the Stuart C. Gruskin Foundation, which has been advocating for pedestrian awareness in cities across the country, and pushed to get this bill passed. We spoke with Nancy yesterday about the safety hazards that happen when a city gets too big for its cycling-infrastructure britches, and better ways to end what she calls the "civil war between cyclists and pedestrians and motorists." more ›

The City Council unanimously voted 51-0 today to pass a package of bills that will change the way the city handles cyclist and pedestrian traffic information. As you're probably aware, the changes come in the midst of a raging debate about the rules (and safety) of the roads. But although there's a growing perception in some circles that cyclists are nothing but a threat to pedestrians and all that is sacred and holy, there's little hard data to give us a clear picture of accidents between cyclists and pedestrians. And the city's stats on traffic accidents are vague overall. That's about to change. more ›

Canal Street: Avoid it at all costs (especially on weekends!) unless you enjoy walking at the pace of an arthritic dromedary chained to a treadmill. The sidewalks are so packed with vendors and their glazed-eye browsers that it's impossible to get anywhere in a timely manner unless you just give into your frustration and simply walk in the street. But help is on the way! For almost ten long years, NYMTC, the region’s metropolitan planning organization, has been studying Canal Street—taking time to get to know its likes and dislikes, its quirks and idiosyncrasies. And finally, in a report released last week, they're ready to recommend some changes. more ›

A new scientific study done by those pocket-protecting eggheads over at Atlantic Monthly says that NYC has ranked as one of the top five most walkable cities in America. But why aren't we number one? Because standing in our way is the god-forsaken, gay pothead homeless persons paradise that is San Francisco. more ›

According to new data released from the Department of Health [pdf], the city's traffic fatality rate is at an all-time low, decreasing 20% from 2005 to 2009. Last year, there were just 256 traffic-related fatalities. But that's still 256 people that didn't have to die, and according to the DOH, "45% of those killed at intersections by motor vehicles were obeying traffic signals when they were struck." more ›

Yesterday morning, around 11 a.m., there were reports of a motor vehicle accident involving an entrapment on 8th Avenue at 11th Street in Park Slope. It turns out an out-of-control livery cab jumped a curb and hit a total of four pedestrians. F***ed in Park Slope wearily asks, "DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW TO DRIVE IN THIS GD NEIGHBORHOOD?" more ›