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
Yesterday’s Times Square Toll Was Terrible — But So Is a Typical Day of NYC Traffic Violence
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Given the high-profile location, the number of victims, and recent instances of people using vehicles to kill for ideology, it's understandable that yesterday's crash drew so much attention. But it's important to recognize that as terrible as the Times Square carnage was for a single incident, the same human toll occurs on a daily basis on NYC streets -- it's just dispersed across the city.
Driver Hits Multiple People on Times Square Sidewalk: 1 Dead, 22 Injured
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Late this morning, a motorist drove onto a Times Square sidewalk and hit multiple people. The deceased victim was an 18-year-old woman. She was walking with her 13-year-old sister, who was also struck.
Few Details From NYPD After Sanitation Truck Driver Kills Woman in Greenwich Village
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The driver of a private sanitation truck killed a 60-year-old woman in Greenwich Village last night. Overall, private trash haulers have a terrible safety record and have struck and killed at least eight people on NYC streets since 2015.
De Blasio’s Defense of Teacher Parking Perks Ignores Everything We Know About Placards
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Mayor de Blasio doesn't see a problem with issuing tens of thousands of new parking placards to teachers and other school workers. His assertion runs contrary to years of documented evidence and the daily observations that pile up on Twitter -- a city placard is a license to park anywhere without fear of getting a ticket.
Speed Cameras Get Traction in Albany, But Marty Golden Promises to Obstruct
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Members of Families for Safe Streets are in Albany today to talk to state legislators about expanding NYC's automated speed enforcement program. After legislative leaders failed to advance a similar bill last year, this session it appears to have more traction.
De Blasio Administration Volunteered to Hand Out Tens of Thousands of New Parking Placards
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The de Blasio administration chose to reissue tens of thousands of parking placards to city school teachers, and was not forced to do so by an administrative law judge, according to the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, the union that represents school principals.
Reversing Bloomberg Reforms, City Will Reissue Tens of Thousands of Teacher Parking Placards
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Get ready for a lot more car traffic and illegal parking around New York City schools. The de Blasio administration is returning to a system that enables widespread abuse of parking privileges, with the Department of Education agreeing to hand out parking placards to any school employee who has a car and requests one, reversing reforms instituted during the Bloomberg administration.
City Council Wants DOT to Relieve Crowding on NYC’s Most Congested Sidewalks
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The City Council is expected to pass two bills today intended to improve the pedestrian environment. One would require DOT to "identify six locations with significant pedestrian traffic and develop strategies for enhancing safety and traffic flow at such locations."
After Yet Another Subway Meltdown, Where’s Cuomo?
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Cuomo has been governor going on seven years. He's had more than enough time to assess the problems afflicting the transit system and work on solutions. But as the core transit system declines, Cuomo continues to fixate on shiny mega-projects.
City Council Might Finally Address How NYPD Applies Right of Way Law
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Speaking at the Vision Zero Cities conference, public safety committee chair Vanessa Gibson said the Right of Way Law "has to" be enforced.
Driver Pleads to Manslaughter for Killing Washington Heights Pedestrian
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At around 4:15 a.m. on January 30, Jonatan Segura was driving a BMW sedan on 181st Street near Amsterdam Avenue when he hit a pickup truck and struck Jorge Encarnacion and an unidentified 46-year-old woman.
Barcelona’s Superblocks: A “New Urban Model” to Reclaim Streets for People
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In the U.S., the term “superblock” conjures up the excess of urban renewal and the breakdown of walkable street grids. But in Barcelona, a different type of superblock is making streets more hospitable and humane.