Six people were killed in 72 hours in New York City between Dec. 18 and Dec. 20 in a series of pedestrian accidents. According to a report in The New York Times, the fatal pedestrian accidents happened in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, reminding residents and officials of the dangers that still plague city streets in spite of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Vision Zero Program and other measures taken by his administration to increase street safety and reduce the number of deadly pedestrian accidents.
Six Deaths in 72 Hours
On the morning of Dec. 18, a 67-year-old man was walking near Main Street in Flushing when a car that was turning into a parking garage struck him. Later that day, a 75-year-old woman who was crossing 52nd Street in the Sunset Park area of Brooklyn was hit by a Jeep that was turning left. The following day, a box truck traveling down Third Avenue near Sunset Park struck and killed an 85-year-old man as he was crossing the street.
Hours later, in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan, a 26-year-old woman was struck by a food delivery truck as it backed into her on Broadway near Howard Street. On the morning of Dec. 20, a private sanitation truck struck and killed a man who was walking in a marked crosswalk in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan. About an hour later, a 57-year-old man was struck and killed by a truck and two other vehicles in Gowanus, Brooklyn. So far, two people have been arrested in connection with two of the collisions, the police said.
The City’s Struggles with Pedestrian Safety
As part of the Vision Zero initiative, the city has provided safety upgrades including giving pedestrians headstarts at crosswalks and installing 224 additional speed cameras citywide. In October, the City Council also agreed on a $1.7 billion plan to expand the number of protected bike lanes. However, pedestrian and bicycle accidents have been skyrocketing not just in New York City, but also nationwide.
In 2018 alone, more pedestrians and bicyclists were killed than in any year since 1990, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported. Researchers point to large SUVs and trucks and the proliferation of smartphones for these fatal accidents. This year, as of Dec. 19, 114 pedestrians have died in New York City compared to 110 in 2018. The number of bicyclist deaths this year has more than doubled.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
In such cases where negligence (carelessness) is established, drivers and vehicle owners can be held financially responsible for the injuries, damages and losses they cause, even if they are not criminally charged by the authorities. Injured victims will able to seek compensation for damages including, but not limited to, medical expenses, lost income and benefits, hospitalization, rehabilitation, permanent injuries, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. It is important to remember that pedestrian accident victims may be able to seek compensation for injuries or losses in collisions even if they were not walking in a marked crosswalk and even if the driver has not been charged. Our law firm recovered the full one million dollar insurance policy for a girl who was not in the crosswalk when a motor vehicle hit her.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a pedestrian accident, or if you have lost a loved one in an auto accident caused by a negligent (careless) driver, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
For over 49 years, our skilled accident attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims get fair compensation for their losses. Our law firm recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury and medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
Please visit us at: www.WORK4YOULAW.com
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/22/nyregion/pedestrian-deaths-nyc.html