NYPD: Drivers Killed 18 Pedestrians and Cyclists in May, and Injured 1,262
Twenty-eight people died in New York City traffic in May, and 4,771 were injured, according to the latest NYPD crash data report [PDF].
As of the end of May, 49 pedestrians and cyclists were reported killed by city motorists this year, and 5,049 injured, compared to 54 deaths and 5,669 injuries for the same period in 2014. Drivers killed more pedestrians in May than in any other single month since the launch of Mayor de Blasio’s Vision Zero program.
Citywide, at least 17 pedestrians and one cyclist were fatally struck by drivers: five pedestrians and one cyclist in Manhattan; three pedestrians in the Bronx; six pedestrians in Brooklyn; and three pedestrians in Queens. Among the victims were Ervi Secundino, Favhad Chowdhury, Amelia Sterental, Nfn Loknauth, John Torson, Victor Grant, Irwin Mayer, Wanda Canestri, Galina Shibayeva, Ian Paul Bubb, Sincere Atkins, Dorria Campfield, Sergei Musatov, an unnamed female pedestrian in Brooklyn, an unnamed male pedestrian in Brooklyn, and an unnamed male pedestrian in the Bronx.
Motorists killed at least two children and six seniors: Sincere Atkins, 8; Ervi Secundino, 12; Amelia Sterental, 76; Nfn Loknauth, 83; John Torson, 89; Irwin Mayer, 96; Wanda Canestri, 68; and Galina Shibayeva, 76.
Motorists killed at least five pedestrians in May whose names were not immediately disclosed by NYPD, or whose deaths were not covered in the press. Most every month, there are pedestrian and cyclist deaths that go unreported other than the scant details provided weeks later in the NYPD dataset, which lists only the intersection closest to the crash and the victim’s mode of travel.
Across the city, 808 pedestrians and 472 cyclists were reported hurt in collisions with motor vehicles. Per NYPD policy, few of these crashes were investigated by trained officers.
Of 16 fatal crashes on surface streets reported by Streetsblog and other outlets, no motorists were known to have been charged for causing a death. Based on NYPD and media accounts, at least five victims were likely walking or cycling with the right of way when they were struck, but police and district attorneys are known to have applied the city’s Right of Way Law in none of those crashes. Historically, nearly half of motorists who kill a New York City pedestrian or cyclist do not receive so much as a citation for careless driving.
In three cases, immediately after a pedestrian was killed, police exonerated the driver by telling the press the victim was not in a crosswalk.
Six motorists and four passengers died in the city in May; 1,630 and 1,879 were injured, respectively.
There were 19,119 motor vehicle crashes in the city last month, including 3,551 that resulted in injury or death.
Download May NYPD summons data here. NYPD posts geocoded crash data here.
Below are contributing factors for crashes resulting in injury and death.