No More Half Measures: Blood Stains Riverdale’s Streets
District 11: Jan 1, 2022 - Jun 4, 2025
Blood on the Asphalt
In District 11, the numbers do not lie. Thirteen people killed. Thirty-four left with serious injuries. In the last twelve months alone, two more lives lost, eleven more bodies broken. Seven hundred sixty injured. The dead do not speak. The living limp on.
Pedestrians and cyclists pay the price. SUVs and sedans do the damage. In the last three years, SUVs killed four, left thirteen with serious wounds. Trucks and buses killed two. Bikes and mopeds, none. The street is not a fair fight (NYC Open Data).
Leadership: Action and Silence
Council Member Eric Dinowitz has stood on both sides of the line. He voted to expand speed cameras, saying, “If you don’t want a speeding ticket, don’t speed.” He backed bills for safer crosswalks, greenways, and covered bike parking. He voted to end jaywalking tickets, shifting blame away from the vulnerable.
But when the city tried to narrow Riverdale Avenue—a street where people die—Dinowitz called the process “undemocratic”. He pushed for left-turn signals, not lane reductions. The avenue stayed wide. The danger stayed with it.
After a bus nearly plunged from an overpass, Dinowitz said, “That’s a very big bus, so even going very slowly, it can do a lot of damage. I think it speaks to the importance of enforcing our parking rules because it was going around a double-parked car. And we’re seeing all over the city parking regulations not being enforced.”
What Comes Next
The crisis is not fate. It is policy. Every death is a choice made by leaders, or a choice they refused to make. Residents must demand more. Call for a citywide 20 mph speed limit. Demand protected bike lanes and safer crossings. Tell Council Member Dinowitz: the time for half-measures is over. The street remembers every name.
Act now. The next victim is only a day away.
Citations
▸ Citations
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4653696, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-04
- Amid Epic Crisis of Road Deaths, Some Members of the City Council Still Oppose Speed Cameras, Streetsblog NYC, Published 2022-05-26
- Bronx Pol Loses Fight Against Street Safety as DOT Moves Ahead on Riverdale Ave., Streetsblog NYC, Published 2022-08-04
- MTA Bus Hangs Off Bronx Overpass, NY1, Published 2025-01-17
- File Int 0291-2022, NYC Council – Legistar, Published 2022-10-27
- Pols Want Covered Bike Parking at Parks, City Buildings, Streetsblog NYC, Published 2024-02-29
- Pedestrian Killed at a Dangerous Bronx Intersection that City Has Failed to Make Safe, Streetsblog NYC, Published 2023-01-04
- Riverdale Rumble: Bronx Panel Rejects DOT Road Diet Plan for Super-Wide Avenue, Streetsblog NYC, Published 2022-04-01
▸ Other Geographies
District 11 Council District 11 sits in Bronx, Precinct 50.
It contains Norwood, Kingsbridge-Marble Hill, Riverdale-Spuyten Duyvil, Wakefield-Woodlawn, Woodlawn Cemetery, Van Cortlandt Park, Bronx CB8, Bronx CB26.
▸ See also
Traffic Safety Timeline for Council District 11
Sedan Slams Parked SUV on West 235th▸A sedan crashed into a parked SUV on West 235th. Metal tore. The 71-year-old driver bled, trapped, incoherent. Another driver suffered a head injury. Sirens rose. The street held the wreckage and the cold.
A sedan struck a parked SUV on West 235th Street. According to the police report, the sedan slammed into the SUV, crushing doors and trapping the 71-year-old male driver, who suffered severe bleeding and leg injuries. He was found incoherent behind the wheel. The driver of the parked SUV, a 34-year-old woman, sustained a head injury but remained conscious. Both vehicles were occupied by one person each. The report lists no specific driver errors or contributing factors. The narrative details the violence of the impact and the injuries to those inside the vehicles. No pedestrians or cyclists were involved.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4497858,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
Sedan Slams Snow Plow on Major Deegan▸A sedan crashed into the back of a snow plow on Major Deegan Expressway. The 41-year-old driver was thrown partway out. He died from head trauma and severe bleeding. Another man, 43, suffered back injuries. Metal twisted. Blood spilled. Night swallowed the scene.
A deadly crash unfolded on the Major Deegan Expressway at 4:04 a.m. when a sedan struck the rear of a snow plow. According to the police report, the sedan's 41-year-old driver was partially ejected and died at the scene from head trauma and severe bleeding. A 43-year-old man in the snow plow suffered back injuries but survived. The report lists both drivers as licensed and traveling straight ahead. No specific driver errors or contributing factors are noted in the data. The sedan's front end struck the snow plow's rear, crushing metal and ending a life in the cold dark. No mention of helmet or signal use appears in the report.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4496246,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
Ambulance Turns Left, Kills Pedestrian in Bronx▸A Ford ambulance turned left on East Gun Hill Road. Its bumper struck a 56-year-old man in the dark. He died where he fell. The vehicle showed no damage. The street stayed silent. The man’s body lay broken from head to heel.
A fatal crash occurred at East Gun Hill Road and Dekalb Avenue in the Bronx. A Ford ambulance, making a left turn, struck a 56-year-old man in the intersection. According to the police report, 'A Ford ambulance turned left. Its bumper struck a 56-year-old man in the dark. No damage to the vehicle. The man died where he fell, his body broken from head to heel.' The pedestrian was killed on impact. The data lists 'Unspecified' as the contributing factor for both the driver and the pedestrian. No driver errors such as failure to yield or distraction are specified in the report. No mention of helmet or signal use appears in the data. The ambulance occupants were not reported injured.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4491529,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
A sedan crashed into a parked SUV on West 235th. Metal tore. The 71-year-old driver bled, trapped, incoherent. Another driver suffered a head injury. Sirens rose. The street held the wreckage and the cold.
A sedan struck a parked SUV on West 235th Street. According to the police report, the sedan slammed into the SUV, crushing doors and trapping the 71-year-old male driver, who suffered severe bleeding and leg injuries. He was found incoherent behind the wheel. The driver of the parked SUV, a 34-year-old woman, sustained a head injury but remained conscious. Both vehicles were occupied by one person each. The report lists no specific driver errors or contributing factors. The narrative details the violence of the impact and the injuries to those inside the vehicles. No pedestrians or cyclists were involved.
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4497858, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-15
Sedan Slams Snow Plow on Major Deegan▸A sedan crashed into the back of a snow plow on Major Deegan Expressway. The 41-year-old driver was thrown partway out. He died from head trauma and severe bleeding. Another man, 43, suffered back injuries. Metal twisted. Blood spilled. Night swallowed the scene.
A deadly crash unfolded on the Major Deegan Expressway at 4:04 a.m. when a sedan struck the rear of a snow plow. According to the police report, the sedan's 41-year-old driver was partially ejected and died at the scene from head trauma and severe bleeding. A 43-year-old man in the snow plow suffered back injuries but survived. The report lists both drivers as licensed and traveling straight ahead. No specific driver errors or contributing factors are noted in the data. The sedan's front end struck the snow plow's rear, crushing metal and ending a life in the cold dark. No mention of helmet or signal use appears in the report.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4496246,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
Ambulance Turns Left, Kills Pedestrian in Bronx▸A Ford ambulance turned left on East Gun Hill Road. Its bumper struck a 56-year-old man in the dark. He died where he fell. The vehicle showed no damage. The street stayed silent. The man’s body lay broken from head to heel.
A fatal crash occurred at East Gun Hill Road and Dekalb Avenue in the Bronx. A Ford ambulance, making a left turn, struck a 56-year-old man in the intersection. According to the police report, 'A Ford ambulance turned left. Its bumper struck a 56-year-old man in the dark. No damage to the vehicle. The man died where he fell, his body broken from head to heel.' The pedestrian was killed on impact. The data lists 'Unspecified' as the contributing factor for both the driver and the pedestrian. No driver errors such as failure to yield or distraction are specified in the report. No mention of helmet or signal use appears in the data. The ambulance occupants were not reported injured.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4491529,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
A sedan crashed into the back of a snow plow on Major Deegan Expressway. The 41-year-old driver was thrown partway out. He died from head trauma and severe bleeding. Another man, 43, suffered back injuries. Metal twisted. Blood spilled. Night swallowed the scene.
A deadly crash unfolded on the Major Deegan Expressway at 4:04 a.m. when a sedan struck the rear of a snow plow. According to the police report, the sedan's 41-year-old driver was partially ejected and died at the scene from head trauma and severe bleeding. A 43-year-old man in the snow plow suffered back injuries but survived. The report lists both drivers as licensed and traveling straight ahead. No specific driver errors or contributing factors are noted in the data. The sedan's front end struck the snow plow's rear, crushing metal and ending a life in the cold dark. No mention of helmet or signal use appears in the report.
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4496246, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-15
Ambulance Turns Left, Kills Pedestrian in Bronx▸A Ford ambulance turned left on East Gun Hill Road. Its bumper struck a 56-year-old man in the dark. He died where he fell. The vehicle showed no damage. The street stayed silent. The man’s body lay broken from head to heel.
A fatal crash occurred at East Gun Hill Road and Dekalb Avenue in the Bronx. A Ford ambulance, making a left turn, struck a 56-year-old man in the intersection. According to the police report, 'A Ford ambulance turned left. Its bumper struck a 56-year-old man in the dark. No damage to the vehicle. The man died where he fell, his body broken from head to heel.' The pedestrian was killed on impact. The data lists 'Unspecified' as the contributing factor for both the driver and the pedestrian. No driver errors such as failure to yield or distraction are specified in the report. No mention of helmet or signal use appears in the data. The ambulance occupants were not reported injured.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4491529,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
A Ford ambulance turned left on East Gun Hill Road. Its bumper struck a 56-year-old man in the dark. He died where he fell. The vehicle showed no damage. The street stayed silent. The man’s body lay broken from head to heel.
A fatal crash occurred at East Gun Hill Road and Dekalb Avenue in the Bronx. A Ford ambulance, making a left turn, struck a 56-year-old man in the intersection. According to the police report, 'A Ford ambulance turned left. Its bumper struck a 56-year-old man in the dark. No damage to the vehicle. The man died where he fell, his body broken from head to heel.' The pedestrian was killed on impact. The data lists 'Unspecified' as the contributing factor for both the driver and the pedestrian. No driver errors such as failure to yield or distraction are specified in the report. No mention of helmet or signal use appears in the data. The ambulance occupants were not reported injured.
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4491529, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-15