Brad Aaron
Brad Aaron began writing for Streetsblog in 2007, after years as a reporter, editor, and publisher in the alternative weekly business. Brad adopted New York's dysfunctional traffic justice system as his primary beat for Streetsblog. He lives in Manhattan.
Recent Posts
Businessman Who Protested 1st Ave Safety Fixes: It’s the 9-Year-Old’s Fault
| | 39 Comments
NYPD and Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance are reportedly targeting a crossing guard for her supposed role in the death of 6-year-old Amar Diarrassouba, who was killed by a truck driver in East Harlem Thursday morning. Meanwhile, a local businessman and community board member who waged a campaign against pedestrian refuges and protected bike lanes […]
Trucker Kills 7-Year-Old in East Harlem; NYPD and Media Eye Crossing Guard
| | 43 Comments
A 7-year-old boy was killed by a truck driver this morning while walking to school in East Harlem. While no charges were filed against the driver, police and media are focused on the actions of a crossing guard, who was reportedly on a break when the crash occurred. Amar Diarrassouba and his 10-year-old brother were crossing […]
NYPD Rarely Enforces Speed Limit on Deadly Broadway in Upper Manhattan
| | 4 Comments
In our Tuesday post on the Tri-State Transportation Campaign’s latest “Most Dangerous Roads for Walking” report, we noted the concentration of pedestrian deaths on Broadway in Washington Heights, where pedestrian islands, protected bike lanes and other safety features are not present above 168th Street. In addition to engineering, another factor in pedestrian fatalities and injuries is, […]
Ray Kelly’s NYC: No Charges for Driver Who Dragged Woman Under Cab
| | 13 Comments
A reader has identified the woman wounded by a cab driver in Upper Manhattan Sunday evening as Amy Fass of Washington Heights. The crash occurred in the 34th Precinct, where officers issued two speeding tickets in the last three months of 2012. Fass was crossing 181st at Haven Avenue, near her home, at approximately 6:45 […]
Tri-State Maps NYC Pedestrian Deaths By Age and Gender
| | 6 Comments
The Tri-State Transportation Campaign’s latest “Most Dangerous Roads for Walking” report [PDF] is another urgent reminder that roads and streets designed for maintaining auto capacity are not safe for people who travel outside a car. Drawing on federal data from 2009 through 2011, the report ranks the region’s most dangerous roads in terms of total […]
Queens Auto Dealer: Buy a Car, Get Heart Disease
| | 7 Comments
Clarence spotted this ad for a used car dealership in Monday’s Daily News. We can’t decide what we like best about it — the “trade in your shoes for cardiovascular disease” concept or the fact that it includes transit directions to the lot, in Long Island City. Either way, it’s refreshing to see a little […]
Curb-Jumping Drivers Kill Women in Manhattan and Brooklyn; No Charges
| | 20 Comments
Two pedestrians have been killed by curb-jumping drivers since Friday in Manhattan and Brooklyn. On Friday evening at approximately 5:40, Martha Atwater was struck by the driver of a Honda truck after she stepped out of Atlantic Bagels Cafe at the corner of Clinton Street and Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn Heights. The unidentified motorist was […]
One Year and 280+ Deaths Later, No Council Progress on NYPD Crash Reforms
| | 7 Comments
It was a year ago today that the City Council transportation committee, led by James Vacca and Peter Vallone Jr., convened a hearing on pedestrian and cyclist safety and the failure of NYPD to properly investigate traffic crashes. “Driving in our city is a privilege, not a right,” said Vacca, to a room packed with […]
Cy Vance: Driver Who Jumped the Curb and Hit Senior Not Reckless
| | 12 Comments
A motorist who hit another vehicle, jumped the curb, struck a 90-year-old man and crashed into Saks Fifth Avenue was not driving recklessly, according to the office of Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance. Mansoor Day was taking his regular walk Wednesday morning when Richard Moussi, driving a Ford SUV with North Carolina plates, hit another vehicle, […]
New York DMV No Longer Describes Traffic Crashes as “Accidents” [Updated]
| | 13 Comments
A sharp-eyed reader pointed out to us that the New York State DMV has stopped using the word “accident” in its annual statistical summaries. On its 2011 data web page, and in each of its 2011 reports, DMV refers to traffic crashes as “crashes.” “Accident” does not appear in any of the agency’s 2011 materials. […]
Ella Bandes, 23, Killed by MTA Bus Driver in Brooklyn; No Charges Filed
| | 1 Comment
A 23-year-old woman has died from injuries sustained when she was struck by an MTA bus driver in Bushwick last month. Ella Kottick Bandes was crossing Myrtle Avenue at Palmetto Street at around 11 p.m. on January 31 when she was hit as the driver of a B52 bus made a right turn, according to […]
CB 4 Still Pushing DOT for Time to Cross Deadly Hell’s Kitchen Intersections
| | 1 Comment
Manhattan Community Board 4 has renewed its call for safety improvements at the Hell’s Kitchen crossing where an elderly woman was killed by a driver last week. The request comes five years after a resolution that asked for exclusive crossing time for pedestrians at the deadly intersection, and is the latest episode in a years-long, […]