A stencil by the group Right of Way shows where Alexander Shear was hit and killed on Jan. 10 at 96th street and Broadway. Photo by Liz Patek.
Efforts to keep pedestrians safer on the Upper West Side have been slow to bear fruit, as recent statistics show that the 24th precinct (covering the Northern half of the neighborhood) has recorded a recent rise in crashes involving pedestrians. That precinct was the site of three deadly crashes early in the year that focused citywide attention on this issue.
The Daily News reported this week that 14 people had been hit by cars in non-fatal crashes between Feb. 17 and March 16, versus eight during the same period last year.
“We are trying everything we can to reduce it,” Capt. James Dennedy, acting commander, told residents last week. The precinct has issued more tickets for jaywalking and failure to yield, trained more officers to use speed guns, and placed a speed tracker on 96th street that shows drivers how fast they are going. The department has also nearly quintupled the number of speeding tickets it has given out, to 34 from 7.
“We are focusing on speeding on the less congested corridors,” Dennedy said.
The Department of Transportation plans to change the intersection at 96th street and Broadway to make it more pedestrian-friendly; slides showing that plan are here and we’ve posted them below.
The 20th precinct, covering the area up to 86th street, has recorded a decline in crashes involving pedestrians from Feb. 24 to March 23, as compared to the previous month, DNAinfo reported. There were 2 crashes during that period, and eight in the prior 30-day period. (We are attempting to get year-over-year numbers too.) In the 20th, commanders have credited new signs that warn pedestrians to stay alert before they cross the street. Several activists are skeptical that that approach will lead to long-lasting benefits if reckless drivers aren’t also targeted.
The Department of Transportation has proposed street modifications at 72nd street and Riverside Drive and at 79th street and Riverside that could also help reduce the danger to pedestrians and bicyclists. More on those here.
Correction: We originally said there were six crashes in the 20th precinct in the prior month. There were actually eight recorded.
1. Make cyclists follow the traffic signals.
2. Good grief those paper signs attached to the polls near intersections with tape are as ridiculous as they are embarrassing.
3. Has anyone seen those buses sliding through the red lights?
Sometimes I wonder if there is any money left after giving developers more subsidies. but don’t worry more are on the way so they can build more luxury housing. More people more cars. But who cares the developers are very happy!
More people more cars? Do you really think people move to this neighborhood with the intention of owning a car? Perhaps a few: those pathetic losers who sit in their cars for the duration of alternate side parking. If you own a car then pay for your own goddamn parking instead of freeloading 90 sq ft of free curbside parking. The sidewalks are too crowded and should therefore be widened to accommodate the masses since 90% of UWS residents don’t get around by car anyway. There’s no reason that 80% of the public space needs to be reserved for the 10% who drive.
And while they’re at it, why not lengthen the walk signal time for people getting across the 96th st and let the drivers wait. There’s no reason that the time of so many people on foot is less valuable than those in cars.
Only 34 speeding tickets??
That’s only 1 a day!
Capt. Dennedy, get real! You’re not doing ANYTHING to make the streets safer for anyone.
I’ve seen no evidence that anyone is trying to reign in the out of control pedestrians at 96th and Broadway. Even when there is a cop out there directing traffic or near the intersection there are still always at least half a dozen people that believe the don’t walk signal doesn’t apply to them when the vehicles making a left into 96th have the arrow.
as a 68 year old, life long new yorker, i have seen an escalation of pedestrians, myself included, i have to admit, not stand on the sidewalk, like foreign tourists do, and wait for the light to change from green to red, before they cross. new yorkers tend to stand in the street, edging close to the traffic lane, and often wait until there is a break in traffic, and just dart across the street, rather than wait until the light changes. this has to contribute to the accident problem. and i have seen new yorkers (obviously) do this, and unwitting foreigners blindly follow the locals in this behavior, not realizing that cars could still be coming. the bicyclists (of which i am one), especially the restaurant delivery men (have never seen a woman doing this), also contribute to the problem, by going any which way on their bikes. i think a major re-education of everyone above, needs to happen, to make the streets safe. of course, the major problem is the cars, but pedestrians and bicyclists, are also part of the equation. more people walking and texting (again, myself included) is another contributing factor in all of this!
I wonder if there were fewer accidents when the subway entrance was on the sidewalk instead of the middle of the street after they renovated the station. Maybe the MTA should open another entrance on the sidewalks where they used to be…
Good comments from everyone so far.
I would like to know at WHAT TIME the bulk of these accidents occur, to see if there is any correlation between them and, for instance, rush hours. Anyone who tries to cross 97th or 96th streets after about 3PM knows it’s like taking your life in your hands. Drivers run the red lights all the time trying to get through the intersection with Broadway on route to the parkway entrance at 96th and RSD. 97th St between Broadway and West End is like the Grand Am at certain times of the day.
And pedestrians are part of the problem, fersure, with a goodly number of pedestrians still jay walking across 96th St – but the corners are small and there are more pedestrians than ever crowded up and trying to get to the subway entrance.
I also wonder how the new street configuration and “the turtle” (as I’ve nicknamed the new subway station) have contributed to this situation.
This is not an easy solution and accidents will continue to happen without a massive campaign to inform the public, both pedestrian and automotive. But how many signs can anyone read at any given point?
I don’t know whether it’s a statistical factor in all this, but a lot of drivers with NJ plates either don’t know or pretend not to know that in Manhattan “right turn on red” is not legal. I’ve noticed this going on for years.
Simple solution. Don’t do anything and let people keep getting hit. Eventually they’ll stop.
It’s the same reason why you don’t stop a young child from putting their hands on a hot stove or in an electrical socket. One burn/shock and the silliness stops. Smarten up people.
Where do you live? I’ll have child services come over asap and take your kids away.
Enforcement to reduce and eliminate dangerous driving is good, but streets designed at a human scale will have a much greater impact on safety for all street users- motorists, cyclists, skateboarders, and most importantly pedestrians. Ticketing pedestrians for jaywalking is not productive. Pedestrians already pay a heavy price if they make a judgement in error when crossing the street. And if pedestrians are waiting in the street to cross with the light, it’s a pretty good indication that we need more space for pedestrians (wider sidewalks).
Seems most folks blame pedestrians for this. Like to know cops are going to start ticketing red light runners, which I see several every single day. And the clowns that block crosswalks. Lord, nyc has some lazy cops. Or just stupid.
What really drives me nuts (no pun intended)!!
I see this a lot on the southeast corner at 72nd St. and Amsterdam.
Even if a car turning right onto 72nd Street stops for pedestrians, there is always some clown who shoots around the stopped car and winds up barely missing the pedestrians who are crossing the street.
Stop the speeders an enforce the law. Or get used to the carnage.
Building an “express” subway entrance in the middle of broadway was a very bad idea. There should be access to the subway from the side streets to access the trains below..without pedestrains having to cross a street. This is a main problem here. However, the powerpoint does show a better way to keep traffic flowing more efficeintly….because if you’ve EVER been at that intersection….just waiting at the corner for a light…you look behind you…so many people show up after 30 seconds…you start asking yourself, “Where’s the Concert?” . It’s insane! People have to cross the street whenever they can because it becomes a population issue every 60 seconds!!!
They moved the subway entrance to the middle because it was impossible to install an elevator any other way. You used to have to traverse several sets of steep narrow stairs to get to the platforms — extremely difficult for the handicapped, elderly, or people with strollers, luggage, etc. And you still can enter the subway from the sidewalk if you walk down a block to 94th/93rd street.
Better lighting on 96 th street would also help…j walkers are invisible mid- block.