Transportation Alternatives Statement After Crashes Kill Three People in One Week in the Bronx

So far this year, crashes have killed more than twice as many people in the Bronx than at this point in 2014, the year Vision Zero started.

BRONX, NY — In one week, drivers have killed three people in the Bronx — two bike riders and one pedestrian — and seriously injured at least six others.

Last Thursday, a driver killed 26-year-old deliverista Jose Angel Victoriano in Mott Haven. Then, on Friday, a woman crossing the street in West Farms was killed by a hit-and-run driver. On Sunday afternoon, a hit-and-run SUV driver struck and killed a bike rider in Soundview. Both bike riders were killed on streets without protected bike lanes. 

This year, traffic fatalities are up a full 58 percent in the Bronx over the Vision Zero-era average and up 131 percent over 2019, the safest year in the Bronx’s recent history. Just six percent of New York City’s on-street protected bike lanes are in the Bronx, compared to the 75 percent located in Manhattan and Queens, even though roughly an equal percentage of residents in every borough ride bikes. 

Statement from Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Danny Harris:

“Last week's fatal crashes are the direct consequence of infrastructure built to move cars at the expense of pedestrians and micromobility users — and New York City’s decades-long disregard for building safe infrastructure for biking and walking in the Bronx. We send our deepest condolences to the loved ones of those killed in recent traffic violence in the Bronx.”

“It is an outrage that in 2022 — eight years into Vision Zero — fatalities in the Bronx are double what they were by this point in 2014. Mayor Adams and Commissioner Rodriguez must urgently implement the NYC Streets Plan and expand traffic-calming infrastructure that slows drivers down and increases safety for vulnerable street users. These investments must be equitable and prioritized in historically under-resourced communities.”

“Urgent investment is needed in the Bronx to combat the crisis of traffic violence and save lives. We can’t afford to wait any longer.”

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