Statement in Response to Scooter Rider Killed on Crescent Street in Queens

On Thursday morning, the driver of an Anheuser-Busch beer delivery truck struck and killed a scooter rider who was in a bike lane on Crescent Street in Queens. 

Statement of Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Danny Harris:

“Another person is dead because our city has once again compromised safety in the name of driver convenience. While street safety advocates fought for and won a two-way protected bike lane on Crescent Street in Queens, the Department of Transportation chose to deploy nothing more than flexible plastic delineator posts to separate people on bikes and scooters from multi-ton motorized vehicles. This “protected” bike lane was not protected.  

New York City can and must do better, and we’re not the first to say so. Last month, city and state elected officials, as well as Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, asked NYC DOT for more robust separation along the Crescent Street bike lane. 

To date this year, more than 200 people have died on New York City streets, and if the rate of death continues through the end of December, 2020 will be the most deadly year of Mayor de Blasio’s time in office. The mayor made a commitment to eliminate traffic deaths, but too many concessions for motorists have resulted in only incremental progress. We cannot achieve the goals of Vision Zero if we’re allowing drivers to enter protected bike lanes, as we have seen happen on Crescent Street and on other streets with substandard protection for vulnerable cyclists and scooter riders.

This Sunday, November 15, in response to the tragic rise in traffic violence and in coordination with the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, Families for Safe Streets and Transportation Alternatives will host a rally at City Hall Park to demand Mayor de Blasio take action to stop the carnage on our streets.”