A woman who struck and killed a former nurse before attempting to flee the scene on the Upper West Side last November was sentenced to 1-3 years in prison, and may be released as soon as this November. Jessica Altruz, who hit 67-year-old Margaret Fisher as she was carrying groceries across West 93rd Street, told the Fisher family to "please accept my sincerest apologies from the bottom of my heart," the Daily News reports, "It was not my intention to flee the scene of the accident but rather an automatic response to fear." more ›

The name of the victim in yesterday's awful accident on Staten Island—in which a firetruck slammed into a van filled with disabled people—has been released: 51-year-old Eric Perry, who died from injuries sustained in the accident, was a longtime participent in the Special Olympics, competing in bowling and track-and-field events since at least 1993, according to the Advance. more ›

A little after noon today a firetruck responding to a 911 call in Staten Island slammed into a van filled with special needs adults leaving one dead, two in critical condition and another twelve in the hospital with minor injuries. The truck from Ladder 81 had its lights and sirens on as it sped down Richmond Road to the Staten Island Expressway when the van, which had eight passengers and a driver in it, made a left turn onto Richmond from Burgher Avenue. more ›

A bill under consideration by the City Council yesterday would require the NYPD to post data about traffic crashes and moving violations online in a timely manner, broken down by precinct. At a rally before the hearing, Council Member Jessica Lappin, the bill's co-sponsor, said, "People are dying on our streets. Everyone knows anecdotally where the dangerous intersections are, but it’s nearly impossible toget the hard data. I want to change that. We are working to ensure that people have the information they need to advocate for their communities." If passed, the NYPD would be required to regularly publicize: more ›

Did you know that pedestrian accidents are the second leading cause of death of people over the age of 45? (It's true, we saw it on NY1.) It's a hazardous world out there once you start getting on in years, and in NYC the Grim Reaper is poised to harvest elderly souls at countless intersections. But one group of seniors is fighting back, and for the next week AARP volunteers are setting up camp to survey some 70 dangerous intersections in all five boroughs. They will be observing, reporting, and, one assumes, angrily shaking a cane or two. more ›

The unlicensed driver who killed an 18-year-old bike rider yesterday morning blew through a red light before crashing into the victim and dragging him over 50 yards, police say. The driver, 28-year-old Michael Oxley of Brooklyn, was charged with criminally negligent homicide amongst other charges, City Room reports. According to witnesses, the cyclist, Jake McDonaugh, was riding east on Beverly Road around 9:30 a.m. and entered the intersection at Flatbush Avenue as Oxley sped through the red light. "He got stuck under the van, and the van [dragged] him about half a block against the asphalt," witness Brian Lorde tells the Daily News. "It was awful. He never had a chance." more ›

Yesterday afternoon, eight vehicles were involved in a fatal crash on the NJ Turnpike that "prompted police to shut down a 25-mile southbound stretch of the highway for hours," the Star-Ledger reports. Apparently a tractor-trailer hit a Buick, which had stopped in the right (southbound) lane: "The impact caused the 2004 Buick LeSabre to become fully engulfed in flames and shift to the center lane, where it triggered a chain reaction involving six other vehicles." The Buick's driver and passengers, five people in their 70s, were all killed. One of the other cars was a Jeep containing three men from NYC, all of whom were injured; charges against the tractor-trailer driver are pending. The highway's hours-long closure hit travelers heading to the Jersey shore and Six Flags Great Adventure. NJ Turnpike Authority spokesman Joe Orlando told the Star-Ledger, "I don't really remember one this bad...Now it's just a matter of trying to figure out what happened down there." more ›

Traffic on the Whitestone Bridge is back running smoothly after an accident yesterday shut it down for most of the afternoon when an overhead sign collapsed and blocked all five lanes of traffic in both directions. The sign and its metal support system, the gantry, came down around 1 p.m. when an MTA Bridges and Tunnels contractor struck it with their truck and the crane attached to its back. more ›