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
Ray Kelly Sees Value in Mapping Car Thefts, But Not Car Crashes
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A couple of months ago, NYPD brass told the City Council that it would be useless for the department to map where people are being killed and injured by motorists. On the other hand, Commissioner Ray Kelly believes the public will benefit from knowing where cars are being stolen. The council succeeded this week in […]
Senior Killed by Bus Driver in Bronx; Hit-and-Run Driver Kills Man in Queens
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Two NYC pedestrians were killed by motorists over the weekend. One of the victims was a senior; the other was struck by a hit-and-run driver in the City Council district represented by Eric Ulrich, where at least five pedestrians have died in traffic in 2013. Last Friday evening at approximately 6:45 p.m., 74-year-old Gloria Mabry […]
City: Recycling Plastic Foam Would Add 1,000 Deadly Trucks to NYC Streets
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Sanitation truck drivers are among the most dangerous to NYC pedestrians and cyclists, and two City Council bills that could lead to recycling — rather than banning — plastic-foam containers may end up putting 1,000 more trash haulers on city streets. Mayor Bloomberg wants to stop the use of polystyrene foam food and drink containers, as they […]
When Killing With a Car Is Murder: Q&A With Nassau ADA Maureen McCormick
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Last month, the Court of Appeals — New York’s highest court — upheld the murder convictions of impaired drivers who killed people in three crashes in Nassau County and Staten Island. Martin Heidgen was driving in the wrong direction on the Meadowbrook Parkway when he slammed a pickup truck head-on into a limousine, killing driver […]
NYPD: 1,499 Pedestrians and Cyclists Injured, 17 Killed in Traffic in October
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Twenty-three people died in New York City traffic in October, and 4,830 were injured, according to the latest NYPD crash data report [PDF]. As of the end of October, 135 pedestrians and cyclists were reported killed by city motorists this year, and 13,310 injured, compared to 130 deaths and 12,655 injuries for the same period […]
Vaccaro: NYPD Coerces Injured Hit-and-Run Victims to Not Pursue Charges
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The City Council transportation committee met today to gather testimony on NYPD hit-and-run crash investigations, but NYPD didn’t send anyone to the hearing. The committee also took up a bill that would codify updates to DOT’s innovative Street Design Manual. Intro 1055 would require NYPD to report to the council every two years on hit-and-run […]
Erik Johnson, 24, First of Seven People Killed by NYC Drivers in Five Days
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A young father struck while on his way to work was the first of at least seven people killed by New York City motorists since last Tuesday. Of the five crashes where the driver remained at the scene — three in Manhattan, one in Staten Island, and one in Queens — none were charged with a […]
Every Traffic Death Should Be Investigated Like the Metro-North Crash
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The buzzing from the helicopters began before 8 a.m. yesterday and did not stop until after dark. They were back before dawn this morning, and at this writing continue to come and go. I live within sight of Sunday’s Metro-North crash, the first incident to result in passenger fatalities in the railroad’s 30-year history. The toll from […]
Council Now Wants to Set Speed Limits at 25 MPH Citywide
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A City Council effort to lower speed limits to 20 miles per hour on residential streets citywide has been dropped in favor of a bill that would set limits at 25 mph on narrow one-way streets. The original bill, sponsored by Council Member David Greenfield, would have set speed limits no higher than 20 mph “on all streets […]
CB 12 Endorses Pedestrian Improvements for Broadway at Dyckman in Inwood
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Manhattan Community Board 12 last night endorsed proposed improvements to a hazardous Broadway intersection in Inwood. At Broadway at Dyckman/200th Street and Riverside Drive, pedestrians currently must negotiate long crossings while watching for drivers coming from different directions simultaneously. There were 128 crashes at the intersection from 2010 to 2012, according to DOT, resulting in injuries to three […]
Unlicensed Driver Who Critically Injured Senior Faces 30 Days and $500 Fine
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Maude Savage did everything right. She used the crosswalk. She looked both ways before entering the street. She waited for the pedestrian signal. Then she was hit by an allegedly unlicensed motorist in a commercial van who drove into her while making a left turn at a high rate of speed. The crash happened at […]
Three People Killed by Motorists in Manhattan and Brooklyn This Weekend
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Three people were killed by motorists in separate crashes in Manhattan and Brooklyn over the weekend. At around 10:00 Sunday morning, Willie Zachary, 65, was struck on St. Nicholas Avenue in the vicinity of W. 131st Street by an alleged drunk and unlicensed driver. According to reports, Prince Julien, 23, was traveling south on St. Nicholas […]