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
DWAI Unlicensed Hit-and-Run Killer Not Charged for Death of Harlem Man
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A driver who left a trail of carnage through East Harlem, killing an innocent bystander, has been sentenced to as little as a year in jail after she escaped charges for taking a life. Simone Walters was driving down Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard on the night of July 21, 2011, when she struck Robert Bond […]
Council’s E-Bike Obsession: Like Trying to Drain the Ocean With a Thimble
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Last Thursday, City Council members held another press event on electric bikes. A bill introduced by Dan Garodnick would double the fine for riding an e-bike on the sidewalk from $100 to $200, according to a DNAinfo report, while the penalty for running a red light would go as high as $900. The city does […]
Two Dead in the Bronx as Killer Drivers Continue to Game NY Legal System
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Two people are dead and another is in critical condition after separate hit-and-run crashes in the Bronx this weekend. On Friday at around 11:20 p.m., David Ellis was riding a friend’s bike on Webster Avenue near East Gun Hill Road when he was struck by the driver of a Nissan Maxima traveling in the same […]
Cop to Central Park Cyclists: Your Safety Matters Less Than a Squirrel’s
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Let’s say someone who’s tired of cars in Central Park decides to hammer nails through some planks and place them on the park drives. Tires are punctured and a few rear-end collisions cause minor injuries. Would NYPD be as flip as the officer quoted in today’s Post story on the vandal (or vandals) who scattered […]
Eyes on the Street: Lines Forming for Ninth Ave Protected Bike Lane
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Construction on Midtown protected bike lanes continues apace. Reader Hilda Cohen sends in the above shot from Ninth Avenue, where she says “contractors are out marking lines between 47th and 39th.” “Traffic was already moving smoother,” writes Hilda. On Twitter, @andrewneidhardt posted this photo of Ninth at 38th. Regular Streetsblog readers may know that I […]
Succeeding Where Albany Failed, Pennsylvania Strengthens Hit-and-Run Law
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Legislators in Pennsylvania this year did what Albany lawmakers could not: addressed a loophole in state law that gives hit-and-run drivers an incentive to leave the scene of a serious crash. But the arduous task of getting a bill to the desk of Governor Tom Corbett exemplifies the difficulty in holding reckless motorists accountable, even […]
Bloomberg and Sadik-Khan Announce New 20 MPH Slow Zones
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Mayor Bloomberg and NYC DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan today announced an expansion of the city’s Slow Zone program, which lowers speed limits in selected areas from 30 to 20 mph and implements low-cost traffic-calming measures like speed humps. Bloomberg and Sadik-Khan were joined in Corona by NYPD Chief of Transportation Bureau James Tuller, City Council […]
Parks Department: Greenway Bridge Rehab Depends on Amtrak Schedule
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We have a few bits of news on the upcoming closure and rehab of the bike-ped bridge that connects the Hudson River Greenway to Washington Heights and the George Washington Bridge. The bridge is a crucial car-free link for commuters and other users, but Northern Manhattan parks administrator Jennifer Hoppa tells us that the Parks […]
On Invisible Pedestrians and Disappearing Motorists
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Three stories linked from today’s headline stack reveal an anti-pedestrian bias that city media types either don’t recognize or have no interest in abandoning. The Department of City Planning will this week unveil a preliminary proposal to upzone a large section of the East Side. When the Post set out to tear down one element […]
Christopher Hutchinson Killed in Brooklyn, Driver Charged With Manslaughter
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A driver has been charged with manslaughter and homicide for killing a Brooklyn man who was sitting outside his own home. Christopher Hutchinson was struck in Prospect Lefferts Gardens at around 3 a.m. Thursday, according to reports. Police say Jean Bigord, 53, was speeding in a 2006 Crown Victoria when he struck a parked car while […]
How New York Traffic Laws Let Hit-and-Run Killers Drive Away Scot-Free
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The scenario repeats itself with alarming frequency. A New York City pedestrian or cyclist is killed by a hit-and-run driver. The driver is eventually located by police, or turns himself in. The driver says he didn’t see the victim, didn’t know he had hit anyone. Prosecutors may or may not issue charges for leaving the […]
Eyes on the Street: Runoff Retention? Sidewalk Extension!
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Clarence files these photos of a dual-purpose street reclamation in Queens. In Woodside at the intersection of 39th Ave and Woodside Avenue they have put in a massive traffic calming/bioswale-ish extension of the sidewalk! It looks like a standard Portland-style bioswale for water runoff. We have queries in with the city for more information, but […]