By Carol Tannenhauser
At about 7:30 a.m., Wednesday, while walking my dog into Central Park at around West 81st Street, I saw flashing red lights in the distance ahead on the roadway.
When I approached, I saw it was an ambulance, with Greenwich Village written on the side. Two women straddling bikes, wearing bike-racing apparel were standing nearby talking. I identified myself as a West Side Rag reporter, and asked what happened.
“A woman was crossing in the crosswalk and she had the light and a guy on a Citibike just plowed right into her,” one woman said. “No comment,” responded the other.
“She must not be from here,” said the first biker. “She didn’t look. She had headphones on. But she had the light.”
She laughed when I responded, “Everyone knows having the light means nothing.”
“They took her away in an ambulance,” she added, though admitting she wasn’t an eyewitness and had heard about it from others. “She had a head wound, there was blood.”
I called the police when I got home for confirmation and details. An NYPD spokesperson said there had been an incident at that spot at 7:17 a.m., but the “job had been cancelled,” because EMS reported that the woman had refused medical treatment.
This comes one day after we reported on a survey conducted by the New York City Parks Department that found that 54 percent of those polled feel safe crossing the roadway in Central Park.
Perhaps they neglected to poll out-of-towners, who assume a green light means go.
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That’s terrible. Did the man operating the Citi bike stay on the scene?
An interview with him would’ve been better.
I totally agree the green light means nothing in NYC. That’s why I always make sure as a pedestrian crossing anywhere in NYC- 1) Drivers are decelerating to a full stop (not turning), 2) micro -anything coming from the other direction. 3) move in a predictable manner myself making eye contact when there is any doubt if the threat sees me.
This is how I crossed 25 years ago before e-cars, bikes, scooters, uni… etc. Oh, I never cover my ears or have my phone out when walking.
I passed by at 7:15am, right after the accident happened. The rider operating the Citi bike was still on the scene. He/she likely fell off the bike in the collision.
The rider stay eeon scene 2 out of 81 crashes in our group of victims. I will guess -no.
Well stated. The reason green does not mean Go is that to many drivers, bikers and pedestrians, rede does not mean stop!
As a driver, biker and pedestrian, I would say that the percentage of drivers who fail to stop at red lights is very small (although certainly dangerous), while the percentage of both bikers and pedestrians is way up there.
We are forced to exercise defensive citizenship in NYC.
“a green light means nothin in NYC”. aagreed. neither does a red light.
Hyperbolic comments tend to muddy the real issues. If a red light meant nothing, every car would sail through. I would agree that red lights mean little to cyclists and pedestrians, but most tend to check that there’s no cross traffic before proceeding through them (for their own safety).
NYCEVSA.com has 900 members, over 80 have been hit. Of those, only 3 perps stayed on the scene, the rest fled.
It may be that they are unaware of the law since their bike is not licensed and they have not been apprised of their vehicle operating legal responsibility?
Unaware of the law!? It is common sense and decency. I started bike riding when I was eight years old and if I created an accident or a neighbor yelled at me for riding on their grass I would stop. Think about what you post before posting it.
I hope the Citibike rider has been arrested. Running a light and hitting a pedestrian is completely unacceptable.
I doubt it’s an arrestable offense.
It’s reckless vehicular assault. Of course it’s crime. The problem is that the NY DA would never prosecute it.
Not how the park works, Joe.
At least CP is better than Riverside.
Not how the park works? Elaborate please? Last I checked a red light means stop and regardless of whether the traffic light is on 5th avenue or inside Central Park, if a person decides to run the light, they should be held accountable for their actions. Unless you have the insider knowledge that lights within Central Park are void of this.
Think this has been answered elsewhere by now but the lights in the park are vestiges of days when citizens could legally drive vehicles in the park. It does not make sense to compare a traffic light in a traffic-less park to 5th Avenue.
Local runners and cyclists are not stopping so tourists can cross an ever-moving primary loop. It is not difficult to navigate crossing this loop without the aid of a meaningless traffic light. If you are familiar with the park, you are familiar with this system, which is alluded to in the article itself.
Obviously I think most incidents like this in the park are avoided by common sense cyclists and runners in the loop. The cyclist is at fault for the incident, but the light is not a serious factor.
aaron,
Fred is correct, bicyclists rarely stop for reds in City Parks.
bicyclists rarely stop for reds in NYC Streets
What’s your point, 2 wrongs make a right? And there’s stopping for reds, and slowing and peddling around pedestrians in the crosswalk who have the walklight. NYC bicyclists rarely manage even the latter.
The traffic light arrangement is not logical in Central Park and was not modified after cars were thankfully kicked out several years ago. A better system would signal to bicyclists, carriage drivers, scooter riders and other wheeled vehicles specific times when they must yield at crosswalks. These users are not going to stop at a red light when no one is in the crosswalk. This better system would also tell pedestrians that these are the safe times to cross the roadway at the crosswalks. Road users generally understand the yield-to-pedestrians rule in NYS, which should be applied and properly marked around Central Park. Instead, we have a chaotic arrangement that is the lazy legacy of excluding cars. In all instances bicyclists should avoid hitting pedestrians, of course. However, a better traffic light system would reduce the danger of such crashes.
How about a bike rider uses his eyes and sees a pedestrian and stops?! Wouldn’t that make sense no matter what the color of the light is or what the road does or whatever? Riders don’t care and their bikes need to be licensed and insured.
As a cyclist who frequents Central Park, I agree that we need to stop for pedestrians no matter what the color of the light is. I try not to bike in an arrogant manner. There is no excuse for not slowing down or stopping. As a pedestrian, even when crossing an avenue with the light, I peer down the segregated bike lanes to see if a ‘dead eyed zombie’ (usually on an e-bike) is about to zoom thru the intersection. If the parked car next to the bike lane is a tall SUV or mini-van, cutting my sightline, I have to work a bit harder to see what is coming.
We have to realize that outside – streets, sidewalks, park drives, etc. – has become a free-for-all. Most sad is that NO ONE CARES, certainly not our politicians or police. Government’s most important function is public safety. As such, it has failed the citizens of New York City.
Please prove me wrong.
” A better system would signal to bicyclists, carriage drivers, scooter riders and other wheeled vehicles specific times when they must yield at crosswalks. ”
That system exists today. It is commonly known as “red lights”> When your light is red you stop and the pedestrians cross.
This is exactly what did not happen in this story. The light was red. The bike did not stop. The pedestrian was hit. Stop blaming the system. Do you think if this cyclist didn’t see and stop for a pedestrian and a red light they would have seen and stopped for a different kind of signal?
Since when is West Drive a dedicated cycling track? Realistically, why do I as a pedestrian have to follow that? If I want to walk right down the middle it’s certainly my right to.
There are markings for runners and cyclists and sidewalks for pedestrians – but knock yourself out
Yes – however, in reality -if not aware – one can lose their life from a speeding bicycle
It is rude to walk right down the middle of the road. Cyclists are limited to the paved 6-mile loop and a few other paths. Pedestrians have many more options.
@Steve, I was about to make the same point but you beat me to it and said it better. Conventional traffic lights aren’t appropriate in a recreational space and only give pedestrians a false sense of security. The whole point is to get riders to yield, not necessarily stop, and the system should reflect that.
Uh, no. Bikes go where they want, when they want.
It’s naive to think you can manage that arrogance by changing the lights. The lights mean nothing. Right-of-way means nothing. Yield to pedestrians means nothing. ZOOM-ZOOM-ZOOM is all that matters.
Cato I would add that Courtesy means nothing either.
Cyclists are incapable of understanding that pedestrians require expanded personal space when confronted with wheeled vehicles and speed. Just as stopping distance increases with speed, the need for personals distancing increases with the speed and recklessness of the vehicles who taunt them.
For cyclists, motor or otherwise, there is no consideration for the comfort of anyone around them. It’s all about them, and they are encouraged by the fact that there are no consequences, for their actions whether it be plaguing pedestrians or killing them.
“A better system would signal to bicyclists, carriage drivers, scooter riders and other wheeled vehicles specific times when they must yield at crosswalks”
This system already exists and you provided the answer to this later in your post. The law states that cyclists must always yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk.
Seemingly like most other traffic laws, this is not regularly enforced by the NYPD. It should be. This incident is the inevitable consequence of that failure.
I have been cycling in NYC for > 20 years. I try to stay on bike lanes when I can. I am an average rider (ride a hybrid, don’t use clips, and hit the brakes when speeding down a hill.)
With that being said, these Citi Bikes have completely taken the joy out of riding for me. The riders are completely reckless, and I am surprised that this morning’s terrible news hasn’t happened more often.
If they are supposed to be used for transportation, why is someone riding the bike in Central Park? He/she was clearly joy riding, not getting from point A to Point B (otherwise they would have been going east/west, not north/side.)
You can’t go east/west. How do you not know that, if you’ve been cycling in NYC for 20 years? The only path bikes are legally allowed on is the Park Drive, and it’s 1-way. There is no crosstown path. For example, if you’re at West 90th Street and you want to get to East 90th, you have to ride the Park Drive down to West 72nd Street and then back up to East 90th.
There is a little-used path behind the police station (if you’re heading east) and another just south of the tennis courts (if you’re heading west) that bikers sometimes use as a shortcut, to save ourselves the hassle of biking 1.5 extra miles just to cross the park. But then you run the risk of being yelled at by sour old ladies: “NO BIKES ON THE PATHS!!!”
Like, OK Grandma. Literally every other path in the park is yours. You won’t let us have just TWO measly little crosstown paths so we don’t have to bike 1.5 extra miles to cross the park? The selfishness is unreal.
You can go east/west via the traverses. The posters point is that if the rider was trying to go north / south they would probably not go that way since it’s probably more efficient taking the bike lanes on CPW / Columbus.
Why couldn’t someone be trying to get from north to south via the park? What if they live in Harlem and work in midtown? What a strange thing to say.
Your last paragraph seems a little ridiculous to me. People should be allowed to ride a bike for pleasure (while obeying traffic laws of course). And we cannot assume this rider’s purpose simply based on the direction they were going.
Actually when there were cars in Central Park, they stopped at the red light.
Yup. I hate to break it to all of the “I hate cars” crowd here, but cars tend to obey laws better than bikes do. On a per-ride basis, the amount of incidents involving cars is rather small. There is still definitely room for improvement, but it could be a lot worse.
The bikers have become increasingly reckless. They just don’t care. Particularly the delivery riders. They are constantly going the wrong way, running lights, etc. And if you say anything, they look at you like they are crazy.
I hate to make the park less attractive, but perhaps a solution is to have a bar lower at a few main crosswalks in the park so that when the light is red so pedestrians can cross, the bar makes it impossible for bikes to get through.
To be fair, I wouldn’t mind a similar bar be in place so that pedestrians don’t cross when bikers have the green light – they are often at fault as well. I can’t stand seeing people jaywalking against a red light at a snail’s pace and blocking traffic and acting like they are doing nothing wrong.
I run in the park and some of these bicyclists are out of control. They ride dangerously fast and they’re oblivious to pedestrians.
Several times I narrowly avoided getting hit while on a run.
The city should put speed bumps in the park. This would help slow down some of these reckless bicyclists.
I absolutely hate how bikers rarely stop at that light. What happened to co-existing?!! I usually wait for the green light, check if a bike is near and then cross even if I see one coming down at light speed. I try to make a point and force them to slow down at least. I will be more careful from now on….. Something needs to be done. It is not fair to pedestrians. It’s dangerous and annoying. If no one’s crossing then fine. But when you see us crossing at a green light and you decide that you have right of way, that is not acceptable.
Walking in Central Park is downright dangerous & it’s not just the Citibikes. Hotshots in peleton outfits zip through crosswalks without a thought. And people ride on the footpaths. I’m beginning to think bikes & scooters should be banned from the park except for during certain hours . . .
I hope this woman sues the bike rider, Citibike, and the City of New York! Nothing will happen without negative publicity that affects their bottom line.
Why is it Citibike’s fault? Their equipment has functioning brakes.
Every New Yorker knows to look both ways on a one way street. Even if its red.
This is absurd. When you have a green you have the right to cross, period. It’s necessary to look if you’re crossing AS the opposing light is turning red, but when it’s steady red?
Just because the vehicular traffic light is green doesn’t mean you have the right to cross if the pedestrian signal is red. That’s what makes turn lanes work.
You may have the right, but do you want to test that you do? By that I mean, are you willing to risk being injured or to injure someone just to prove your point?
Stop. Look. Listen. My mum taught me that about 30 years ago. Still makes sense.
Install speed bumps before pedestrian crossings. The park is not a raceway. It’s vile that the woman laughed about the lights meaning nothing. If her head was cracked open she wouldn’t be laughing.
Speedbumps are not practical for a multi-use park that has numerous running and cycling races throughout the year.
Hmmm pretty sure Hyde Park in London has speed bumps. Last I checked they also have numerous races throughout the year.
One wonders how that “incident” will be recorded in the official data, if at all. Will it show up as a “pedestrian hit by bike” in DOT, NYPD, Crashmapper databases or not, if the “job was cancelled”?
The NYPD class this garbage riding of bikes as a quality of life issue.
Every day I ride my acoustic bicycle on the UWS and jaywalking pedestrians walk across the street in front of me when the light is red. If I weren’t paying attention, I could be hit by one of these scofflaw walkers and end up falling and hurting myself.
All pedestrians should be forced to be registered and have insurance!
Obviously, I don’t really feel this way. My point is that the streets are chaotic and everyone needs to take responsibility for their safety. It’s not always safe to walk when the light is green, nor is it safe to cycle. But people need to adjust to the reality of our streets. Cycles should always yield to pedestrians, and cars and trucks should stop at red lights. But I wouldn’t count on it.
Pedestrians have much less momentum than you.
Obey the law. It’s that simple.
On bike issues – IMO it is a problem that the City keeps encouraging tourists to bicycle (everywhere) including use Citibike.
Bicycling is now a “cool” tourist activity.
Tourists have no idea where they are going, don’t know what they are doing and are trying to see the sights.
So dangerous for them and everyone else!
the City should be encouraging tourists to use bus and subway.
And walk.
Yes City DOT is doing a lot of PR and messaging to bicycle.
In contrast, City DOT does only generic “advisement” to take “public transit”
Plus City DOT implemented Open Streets forcing bus detours.
Looks like City DOT is favoring bicycles and basically sabotaging MTA bus and subway…
I’m not even much of a cyclist, but as a pedestrian bikes are easy to avoid if one yields the right of way. Bikes have the speed and the momentum, so just look both ways and wait. No surprise that here the pedestrian not only didn’t look but was also enmeshed in her own little musical world.
Utter nonsense.. Did you read what you wrote?
Why should a pedestrian in a crosswalk crossing when the light is green to him yield to a law-breaker? Should the elderly be forced to yield to twenty year olds and women to men because the latter are stronger? Moreover, try crossing with three kids and see how easy it is to avoid criminals on bikes!
Bikes are NOT easy to avoid. That’s a falsehood, and dare I say, a LIE. They zoom in pedestrian crosswalks when pedestrians have the right of way. The zoom all over the sidewalks illegally, they zoom through red lights illegally, and zoom the wrong way up one way streets. The pedestrian in this case had the right of way. Your gas lighting is not working.
Does anyone know if it was a “regular” Citibike or an e-bike? The e-bikes go 18MPH, which is far faster than regular bikes can travel.
I believe it was a “regular” blue Citibike. It’s easy to go 18+MPH without much effort at this spot since it’s downhill.
I am so sick and tired of bike riders not stopping at red lights or following other basic laws and rules of the road. You can argue all day that cars injure more people than bikes, but as a pedestrian, I’ve had infinitely more close calls with bikes vs cars. When pedestrians have the right of way, they would be able to have more confidence that they aren’t going to get plowed into by a speeding bike, electronic or otherwise.
Recently saw a man on e-Citibike – with one arm in a cast!
He was using the other arm to hold the bike.
He had earpods.
On Amsterdam Ave and not in the bike lane.
A 30-something guy who clearly could have taken the bus or subway.
But instead of taking the bus or subway, he can now virtue-signal and complain about the challenge of bicycling with one arm in a cast….
How about the number of parents (mainly fathers) with young children riding on the handlebar? Both without helmets. Not in the bike lane. I see them all the time. It isn’t even on the line of child abuse.
As someone who crosses over to run at the reservoir nearly every day, I use the highest level of caution when crossing the bike lane–I hate it. The light almost makes it worse, and I can see how it’s downright dangerous for out of towners who expect bikes to stop on red
Can’t count on cyclists to stop at red lights in the Park. Typically tourists on bikes will stop but you still have to look for the spandex biker who’s not going to stop. So I’d rather that everyone just keep going so I can cross when the coast is clear.
Those traffic lights that are leftover from when the park drive was a car route are a joke. No one obeys them, not pedestrians, not wheeled vehicles. They should be removed.
What’s needed is signage for riders warning them to slow down and watch for pedestrians crossing, and signs for pedestrians, warning them to watch for fast-approaching riders. Flashing lights would help.
I also would like to see speed bumps or rough pavement that would force wheeled vehicles to slow down as they approach crossings. I’m sure the bike racers who like to zoom around the drive would object, but too bad.
Your solution is signage? You mean like No Honking in hospital zones? Or No Littering? Good luck with that.
I can’t imagine the Parks Department survey is accurate . Truth is, pedestrians are in danger virtually everywhere in NYC. The police are not empowered to ticket bike riders, and scooters of all types are actually legal on sidewalks, which is horrifying and exceedingly dangerous . In NYC, being such a busy, crowded place, you always took your life in your hands stepping into the street. Now you take your life in your hands when you step out of your front door.
Why is this headline “woman hit by bicycle?’ She’s was hit by an e bike. At the very least the headline should say hit by a Citibike. E bikes don’t belong in our parks. Please call and email your legislators -Gale Brewer, Brad Hoylman, Linda Rosenthal, Shaun Abreu, Danny O’Donnell and let them know how you feel. For CM Brewer and CM Abreu ask them to sign the city bill- Intro 0060-2024 prohibiting. E bikes in parks. http://www.nycevsa.org
Are you sure this was an e bike?
Reply button still not working?
Anyway, yes, THE SURVEY YOU REFERENCED WAS CONDUCTED AS USUAL BY THE CORRUPT DOT AND MAYORS OFFICE AND IS SKEWED.
900 MEMBERS OF NYC-EVSA WERE NEVER POLLED.
incidents like this are far more important than sidewalk writing!!!!!!!
Ebikes need to be OMITTED FROM THE PARK. PERIOD..
Hi Carol. Yes the parks survey said 54% feel safe. We have 900 members in EVSA (81 victims) and not one filled out this survey. This survey was filled out by a lot of Trans Alt supporters because they knew about survey. 5000 people out of 8 million took survey? That it less than 1% of NYC population. And even WITH these, totally skewed, results, 45 % don’t feel safe?! That is horrifying! 45% is HUGE! Now let’s do a ballot initiative. And get the real truth. It would be a landslide in favor of prohibiting motorized vehicles from parks.
http://www.nycevsa.org
I hope she’s okay! Please join EVSA to discuss these issues. I’m a fellow victim of this bike madness.
I was hit by a bike in Central Park a few years ago before I moved to the city. I did not know that bikes do not stop at red lights. The biker took off. I flew up in the air and landed on my tailbone. A half dozen kind New Yorkers helped me to a bench and two women stayed with me till I assured them I was ok. I made a police report because I wanted the accident recorded. The officers could not have been more indifferent and rude. I now live on the UWS and know to look three times before crossing on any green light and never look at my phone while walking. Tourists or visitors have no way of knowing this until they are involved in an accident. Not good for safely. I’m fine, but if I had landed on my head, I shutter to think what could have happened.
How about large speed bumps and gates wherever there is a pedestrian crossing ? Doesn’t sound hard to do.
This is not practical for the large population who travel on wheels, including those on scooters, skateboards, inline skates, and bicycles.
But shouldn’t all those examples also be stopping at the pedestrian crossings? That seems like basic traffic common sense. If you don’t have the light/right-of-way and/or there is a pedestrian crossing, you stop.
So, because it’s not practical for them, others have to be put in danger?
Are you convinced that installing speed bumps and gates will eliminate all danger? I am convinced they will not and it is not worth the annoyance of dealing with them when their are better alternatives.
The comment is wrong
e-scooters are not legal on sidewalks, even to park an e-scooter on the sidewalk is not legal in NYC
I was out with my dog and saw the woman sitting in the street. A fire truck was just arriving and gave her something for the side of her face.
It’s a particularly tricky spot where she was struck. The cyclists come around a bend then down a hill, where they pick up speed. I saw a cyclist stopped, but no Citibike rider.
I hope she will be ok.
I hate to say how accurate and true some of the comments are about cyclists. I’m a cyclist myself on a road bike that does occasional laps around central park for exercise. I myself admittedly also ignore the lights as long as there’s no pedestrians attempting to cross. I look for people crossing whether it’s green or red and make an attempt to slow down or gesture them to cross if it’s their green light. The police can pull you over in the park if they see you run a red light on a bike. They did that to me and gave a warning and continued to follow me for half a mile making sure I stop at all remaining lights. It’s unfortunate that the elitist cyclists in $10k+ bikes and looking to beat their PRs who are ignorant of all lights and people have created the a-hole image of cyclists are all a-holes.
“I’m a cyclist myself………I myself admittedly also ignore the lights” —That tells me all I need to know. And you say that it’s “unfortunate” that people have created an image of all cyclists? Gee, I wonder why that is?
What is wrong with this comment? K From HK stated they would stop if there are pedestrians around or looking to cross. At least they are exercising caution as opposed to other bikers who flat out ignore the lights.
Thanks for covering this latest example of Citibike carnage, Carol. WSR reporters are always on the job!
I’m glad the woman wasn’t hurt badly (which I assume from her refusal to have medical care).
And a cyclist says “everyone knows having the light means nothing! Yep that the attitude.
According to Central Park Conservancy –
Pedestrians have right of way at all times
If you are in the crosswalk with the walk sign or not, if you are a pedestrian, it is your right of way regardless of what bikers claim to believe
Car drivers, normally, do obey the rules. Most biker riders don’t. And they actually have an attitude about cars.
As a native NY, I say, let’s get all the Citi bikes (and ESPECIALLY ebikes) out of the city. We have mass transportation here. Take it. And stop trying to make NYC the midwest.
The lights in Central Park are for cars (in my view). Any discussion talking about bike riding outside of the park is not relevant to this issue. What about runners? When I’m running in the park in the runners lane should I be expected to stop for a red light? Three years ago when I was training for the marathon I had a women step off the curb in front of me and cut me off, telling me that she had the light and I should stop. Just switch the lights to flashing yellow in all directions and look before crossing. Last month I helped with people crossing the lanes during an NYRR race and it was manageable with bikes and groups of runners. All it takes is for the pedestrian to have a little common sense (and signs with guidance).
Citi Bikes are a scrouge
I bike I walk i drive. Equally a green light means nothing as a car driver or a biker and pedestrian will just step out in front of you anticipating you will stop.
71st between Mc Donald’s and Trader Joe’s is a particularly egregious one. Pedestrian like to imagine there is no roadway there!
Right – 71st Street is a difficult, confusing intersection.
It was somewhat quieter years ago, before Trader Joe’s arrived in 2009 and before the City unleashed bicycling without rules.
But TJ’s is a big “destination” plus all the other changes and activity that generate crowds and chaos.
DOT street changes have made some things worse as well IMO
I walk that intersection on 71st all the time and have driven it often in all directions. If you walk it, you know the issues – so it makes you very slow and careful as a driver! It’s very complex. But Pedestrians have the right of way. You can flash lights or use a horn if you really need to in a vehicle. But it’s a huge pedestrian intersection, for walking, bus, subway, and shopping. Traffic can be turning on to 71st during ANY light phase from Broadway (south or north – to- west) and also Amsterdam (north to west), or crossing 71st (westbound). The pedestrians only have the light once, but often cross against it if crosstown traffic is light or there is a rush to the subway (pedestrian traffic is also crazy from any corner to any other- of like 12 corners.) It’s really not that hard to be a driver. Harder on a bike or your feet. .
I’ll take the opposite point: I think the red/green traffic lights should be eliminated. They are a leftover from when cars were permitted and would actually stop on red … and when there were almost zero bicycles on that road in Central Park. Now, for safety and acknowledging reality, just give the bicycles the right of way. There’s always a gap in the flow of bicycles at some point, for an alert pedestrian to cross safely. Instead of the red/green lights, set them to a permanent blinking yellow facing the pedestrians trying to cross. And a blinking yellow towards the road to warn the bicyclists to be more alert, just in case some pedestrian is blundering across the road.
And if in the future the uptake of bicycles is so huge that there aren’t frequent gaps for safe crossing, then at that point, revisit the idea of actual red lights.
I never knew the Police Department survey existed. Seems like a very small sample. It’s time to reissue it.
I find some bicyclists think they are on a racetrack and are indeed a threat to pedestrians. They also feel a need to curse if you don’t give them the right of way.
Speed bumps sound like a good idea but they will penalise the recreational rider.
Bicyclists – especially Citibikers – behave badly and proactively ignore traffic rules.
And NYC keeps rewarding bicyclists – no enforcement of rules, adding more bike lanes.
MTA lets bicyclists on the subway even though they take up space and e-bikes even worse.
It’s a big problem in Central Park. The bikers lsugh in pedestrians’ faces. There are never any cops around to witness this violation.
“She must not be from here,” said the first biker. “She didn’t look. She had headphones on. But she had the light.”
This comment by the witness is very blame the victim.
Another liability for Lyft/Citibike.
Was it just peddle bike, or was it an e-assist e-bike?
Pedestrian’s responsibility:
In this case, she apparently had the light in her favor,
but in response to all the bike haters writing here, I would like to point out that many pedestrians ignore the lights, too. Often people cross at random places and don’t even look up to see what is coming at them. I’m like…dude, would you do that on Fifth avenue?
Both cyclists and pedestrians ought to follow the rules.
Pedestrians have a lot less momentum than bicycles +riders in motion. And it’s that momentum which can kill a pedestrian, worse if the “bicyclist” is accelerating, since then it’s kinetic energy which is an even harder impact.
blah blah blah….a cyclist can get hurt pretty badly by crashing into a pedestrian who ignore the crossing signals.
The rules are literally in clear text “pedestrians have right of way at all times”
This makes me SICK!!!
I work from home on Wednesday’s and took a quick ride around the Park before work (when it’s not 100 degrees). I saw this accident. I thought she was killed and don’t know how she survived. I was behind the guy on the Citibike. I was in the middle of the road (he was closer to the right side of the street). When the woman was hit, I saw one of her air pods fly up in the the air and land about 10 feet away from her after the crash.
I did not see the full accident, just the collision. I don’t know if she had a light (though I believe she was in the crosswalk).
Bottom line: I’m very glad that she was not seriously hurt. BUT DO NOT WEAR YOUR Air Pods and be on your cell phone when walking across the street!
We are living in a society where we are supposed to act in a civilized way. I would send all the people who violate the traffic lights in NYC straight to Rikers Island for at least one year, and let them figure out the meaning of human decency.
I jog regularly on West Drive.. Cyclists frequently use the narrow pedestrian path, even when the much wider cycling path is clear. I’ve narrowly avoided being hit a few times, once when NYPD was driving by slowly. Why no enforcement?