Who Dies Next? Speed Kills, Silence Enables
AD 69: Jan 1, 2022 - Jun 4, 2025
The Bodies in the Crosswalk
A woman crossing Amsterdam at 96th. A child at Cathedral Parkway. Both struck by SUVs. Both dead. In the last twelve months, two people killed and four left with life-changing injuries in Assembly District 69. One was a child. One was old enough to be her grandmother. There is no pattern except the bodies left behind.
The numbers do not flinch: 442 crashes, 192 injuries, 4 serious injuries, 2 deaths in a single year, according to NYC Open Data. The street does not care if you are young or old. It does not care if you have the light. It does not care if you are careful.
The System Fails the Vulnerable
The dead are not just numbers. Miriam Reinharth, 69, was crossing with the signal when an ambulance turned left and killed her. The police told her husband, “The police officer said the accident was not Miriam’s fault at all”. A 13-year-old girl was hit by an SUV at Cathedral Parkway. She never made it home.
The city writes tickets. Sometimes, months later, it charges a driver. But the street stays the same. The cars stay fast. The crosswalks stay wide. The risk stays with the walker, the child, the old woman, the cyclist.
What Has Been Done—and What Has Not
Assembly Member Micah Lasher has taken a step. He co-sponsored a bill to force speed limiters on repeat dangerous drivers—those who rack up tickets or points (A2299). The bill sits in committee. No vote. No law. The streets wait.
Lasher has called for regional MTA funding, but the capital plan stalls. The clock ticks. The city’s arteries keep bleeding (Streetsblog NYC).
The Next Step Is Yours
Every day of delay is another risk. Call Lasher. Call the council. Demand safer speeds. Demand action on speed limiters. Demand streets that do not kill. The dead cannot speak. You can. Take action now.
Citations
▸ Citations
- Police Car Hits Diners In Manhattan Crash, New York Post, Published 2025-05-27
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4595452, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-04
- Ambulance Driver Charged After Fatal Turn, NY Daily News, Published 2025-04-29
- File A 2299, Open States, Published 2025-01-17
- CAPITOL DISPATCH: Albany Has No Plan, the Feds are Fuming and Transit Riders Are Facing a True ‘Shithole’ If MTA Cash Isn’t Raised, Streetsblog NYC, Published 2025-03-26
- NYPD Car Hits Pedestrians In Morningside, NY Daily News, Published 2025-05-27
- Horse-Drawn Carriages Collide In Central Park, ABC7, Published 2025-05-27
- NYPD Issues Criminal Summonses For E-Bikes, NY1, Published 2025-05-30
▸ Other Geographies
AD 69 Assembly District 69 sits in Manhattan, Precinct 24, District 7.
It contains Upper West Side-Manhattan Valley, Morningside Heights.
▸ See also
Traffic Safety Timeline for Assembly District 69
Sedans Collide at LaSalle and Broadway, Driver Bleeds▸Steel slammed steel at LaSalle and Broadway. Two sedans met. One turned left, one drove straight. Airbags burst. A young man’s arm split open. Blood pooled. Smoke drifted in Harlem’s morning. The street held the wound.
Two sedans collided at the corner of LaSalle Street and Broadway in Manhattan. According to the police report, a left-turning sedan struck a sedan traveling straight. The impact tore open the arm of a 28-year-old male driver, who was left conscious but bleeding with severe lacerations. Airbags deployed in both vehicles. The crash report lists 'Traffic Control Disregarded' as a contributing factor. No pedestrians or cyclists were involved. The data shows no helmet or signal violations. The crash underscores the danger when drivers ignore traffic controls at busy intersections.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4533302,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-14
Sedan Skids on Slick Henry Hudson Asphalt▸A Chrysler sedan slid south on Henry Hudson Parkway. Metal crumpled at the front. The lone driver, 27, suffered deep leg cuts. He stayed conscious. The road was dark and slick. No other injuries reported. Pavement conditions played a role.
A 2000 Chrysler sedan traveling southbound on Henry Hudson Parkway lost control on slippery pavement. According to the police report, 'A 2000 Chrysler sedan slid on slick pavement. Metal folded at the nose. The 27-year-old driver, alone, belted, bled from deep cuts in his leg. He stayed awake. The road stayed dark.' The driver, the only occupant, suffered severe lacerations to his leg but remained conscious. The police report lists 'Pavement Slippery' as the primary contributing factor. No other vehicles or road users were involved. No driver errors beyond the hazardous road surface were cited in the report.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4499935,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-14
Steel slammed steel at LaSalle and Broadway. Two sedans met. One turned left, one drove straight. Airbags burst. A young man’s arm split open. Blood pooled. Smoke drifted in Harlem’s morning. The street held the wound.
Two sedans collided at the corner of LaSalle Street and Broadway in Manhattan. According to the police report, a left-turning sedan struck a sedan traveling straight. The impact tore open the arm of a 28-year-old male driver, who was left conscious but bleeding with severe lacerations. Airbags deployed in both vehicles. The crash report lists 'Traffic Control Disregarded' as a contributing factor. No pedestrians or cyclists were involved. The data shows no helmet or signal violations. The crash underscores the danger when drivers ignore traffic controls at busy intersections.
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4533302, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-14
Sedan Skids on Slick Henry Hudson Asphalt▸A Chrysler sedan slid south on Henry Hudson Parkway. Metal crumpled at the front. The lone driver, 27, suffered deep leg cuts. He stayed conscious. The road was dark and slick. No other injuries reported. Pavement conditions played a role.
A 2000 Chrysler sedan traveling southbound on Henry Hudson Parkway lost control on slippery pavement. According to the police report, 'A 2000 Chrysler sedan slid on slick pavement. Metal folded at the nose. The 27-year-old driver, alone, belted, bled from deep cuts in his leg. He stayed awake. The road stayed dark.' The driver, the only occupant, suffered severe lacerations to his leg but remained conscious. The police report lists 'Pavement Slippery' as the primary contributing factor. No other vehicles or road users were involved. No driver errors beyond the hazardous road surface were cited in the report.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4499935,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-14
A Chrysler sedan slid south on Henry Hudson Parkway. Metal crumpled at the front. The lone driver, 27, suffered deep leg cuts. He stayed conscious. The road was dark and slick. No other injuries reported. Pavement conditions played a role.
A 2000 Chrysler sedan traveling southbound on Henry Hudson Parkway lost control on slippery pavement. According to the police report, 'A 2000 Chrysler sedan slid on slick pavement. Metal folded at the nose. The 27-year-old driver, alone, belted, bled from deep cuts in his leg. He stayed awake. The road stayed dark.' The driver, the only occupant, suffered severe lacerations to his leg but remained conscious. The police report lists 'Pavement Slippery' as the primary contributing factor. No other vehicles or road users were involved. No driver errors beyond the hazardous road surface were cited in the report.
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4499935, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-14