Ozone Park Bleeds While Politicians Stall

Sep 26 - A northbound sedan driver hit a moped's rear on Cross Bay Blvd at 109 Ave. One driver was injured. Two other injuries listed as unspecified. Police recorded unsafe speed and inexperience. Distraction also noted.

On Cross Bay Blvd at 109 Ave in Queens, both vehicles were heading north and going straight at 1:00 a.m. The driver of a sedan hit the back of a moped. Impact to the moped's rear and the sedan's front. A 36-year-old male driver was injured, with hip and upper-leg pain and whiplash noted. Two others were listed with unspecified injuries. "According to the police report," contributing factors included Unsafe Speed and Driver Inexperience; officers also recorded Driver Inattention/Distraction. The moped had left rear bumper damage. The sedan showed center front-end damage.

• Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4845971 - Crashes, Persons, Vehicles , NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-10-02

• Motorcyclist killed in multiple collisions on Long Island Expressway, NYPD says, Gothamist, Published 2025-09-26

• Woman killed after being pinned under car while crossing Queens intersection, ABC7, Published 2025-09-21

• Female construction worker killed on Queens job site, hit-and-run driver arrested, NY Daily News, Published 2025-09-20

• Man struck and killed by two vehicles while trying to cross Belt Parkway in South Ozone Park: NYPD, amny, Published 2025-09-16

• Suspect in deadly DWI crash sexually harassed teen before intentionally striking her with SUV, Queens DA says, CBS New York, Published 2025-09-15

• 16-year-old girl struck and killed in Queens, CBS New York, Published 2025-09-13

Sep 5 - Two sedan drivers crashed at Linden and 96 St in Queens. The westbound driver, 34, was injured. Police recorded Traffic Control Disregarded and Other Vehicular. Both front ends hit as one went west and one north.

Two sedan drivers crashed at Linden Boulevard and 96 Street in Queens at 16:20. A 34-year-old woman driving west was injured with an abrasion; she was conscious and not ejected. A 31-year-old man driving north was listed with an unspecified injury status. According to the police report, both drivers were going straight, and police recorded "Traffic Control Disregarded" and "Other Vehicular" as contributing factors. Both vehicles had front-end impact noted, including a left front bumper hit on the westbound sedan. Each car carried a single, licensed driver.

• Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4845976 - Crashes, Persons, Vehicles , NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-10-02

Aug 27 - A westbound sedan driver on Rockaway Boulevard hit a 10-year-old girl at 97th Street in Queens. She suffered leg crush injuries. Police recorded driver inexperience and following too closely by the driver.

According to the police report, a driver in a sedan traveling west on Rockaway Boulevard hit a 10-year-old pedestrian at 97th Street in Queens. The child was injured in the lower leg and foot and suffered documented crush injuries. Police recorded driver inexperience and following too closely by the driver. The crash happened at an intersection. The point of impact was the left front bumper, and the vehicle showed center front-end damage. No other injuries were listed in the report.

• Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4839983 - Crashes, Persons, Vehicles , NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-10-02

Aug 26 - Two cars met hard at Linden and 96th. Metal bit metal. Three passengers hurt. A westbound sedan took the hit in its left side. Distraction ruled the scene. Queens bled and kept moving.

Two vehicles collided at Linden Boulevard and 96 St in Queens, involving a northbound SUV and a westbound sedan. Three occupants were injured: a 50-year-old female rear passenger, a 36-year-old female driver, and a 23-year-old female rear passenger. According to the police report, contributing factors were “Driver Inattention/Distraction” and “Driver Inexperience.” The sedan sustained damage to the left side doors; the SUV showed center-front damage. The report lists distraction and inexperience for involved drivers and occupants, pointing to preventable driver error. No pedestrians or cyclists were reported injured. The data does not cite signals or helmets as factors.

• Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4839245 - Crashes, Persons, Vehicles , NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-10-02

Aug 23 - Two sedans collided at Rockaway Boulevard and Woodhaven in Queens. Both drivers suffered elbow and arm injuries with minor bleeding. Police cited driver inattention/distraction. Both cars hit at the left-front bumpers.

The driver in an Audi traveling northeast and the driver in a Nissan traveling east collided at Rockaway Boulevard near Woodhaven Boulevard in Queens. Both drivers were injured. Each complained of elbow, lower-arm and hand wounds and minor bleeding. According to the police report, the contributing factor was "Driver Inattention/Distraction." Police data show both vehicles were going straight and both had left-front bumper impacts. Both drivers were not ejected and were reported wearing lap belts and harnesses. No pedestrians or cyclists were listed. The report records driver inattention as the error and ties damage to front-left impacts between the two sedans.

• Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4836938 - Crashes, Persons, Vehicles , NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-10-02

Aug 14 - On Liberty Ave at 88 St, an SUV cut left and hit a westbound cyclist. The rider went down. Bruised arm. Driver distraction cited. Improper turn listed. Another night, another bike versus steel on Queens asphalt.

A 2012 SUV turning left from Liberty Ave at 88 St hit a westbound bicyclist. The cyclist, a 32-year-old man, sustained a contusion to the arm and remained conscious. According to the police report, contributing factors were “Driver Inattention/Distraction” and “Other Vehicular.” The driver’s actions also included “Turning Improperly,” and the SUV’s center front end struck the bike. The bicyclist was traveling straight ahead. Driver errors—distraction and an improper turn—are documented. The report lists the bicyclist’s safety equipment as “Other,” noted after the driver factors. This crash underscores the danger of a left-turning SUV crossing a cyclist’s path on Liberty Avenue in Queens.

• Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4837316 - Crashes, Persons, Vehicles , NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-10-02

Aug 14 - Int 1362 repeals the definitions of “protected bicycle lane” and “protected bus lane” and strips explicit benchmarks for protected lanes from the streets master plan. It preserves signal and pedestrian targets but weakens commitments to physical protection, threatening safety and equity.

Bill Int 1362-2025. Status: Sponsorship, introduced Aug 14, 2025. Referred to Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The measure, titled "A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to removing benchmarks for bus lanes and bicycle lanes from the streets master plan and repealing certain definitions in relation thereto," repeals the definitions of "protected bicycle lane" and "protected bus lane" and removes related benchmarks in the master plan (master plan dates referenced include Dec. 1, 2021 and Dec. 1, 2026). Primary sponsor: Robert F. Holden. Co-sponsors: Inna Vernikov, Joann Ariola, Chris Banks, Vickie Paladino. Safety analysts warn: "Removing explicit benchmarks and definitions for protected bus and bicycle lanes weakens commitments to physically protected infrastructure... likely reducing mode shift to walking and cycling and worsening equity and safety-in-numbers; the retained measures focus on signals and pedestrian amenities but do not replace the protective effect of designated protected lanes."

• File Int 1362-2025, NYC Council – Legistar, Published 2025-08-14

Aug 14 - Int 1362 strips definitions for protected bus and bike lanes and removes benchmarks from the streets master plan. It guts measurable targets. Safe space for pedestrians and cyclists is at risk. The city could slow needed separated infrastructure.

Bill: Int. No. 1362 (Int 1362-2025). Status: SPONSORSHIP. Committee: Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Event date: 2025-08-14. The matter reads: "A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to removing benchmarks for bus lanes and bicycle lanes from the streets master plan and repealing certain definitions in relation thereto." Council Member Robert F. Holden is the primary sponsor. Joann Ariola and Vickie Paladino are co-sponsors. The draft repeals the definitions of "protected bicycle lane" and "protected bus lane" and removes explicit benchmarks tied to transit signal priority, bus stop upgrades, accessible pedestrian signals and intersection redesigns. Removing those benchmarks weakens commitments to high‑quality separated infrastructure and measurable mode‑shift targets, likely slowing deployment of safe space for pedestrians and cyclists and undermining equitable street redesigns.

• File Int 1362-2025, NYC Council – Legistar, Published 2025-08-14

Aug 14 - Int. No. 1362 strips city definitions and benchmarks for protected bicycle lanes and protected bus lanes. It removes targets and accountability. The change will slow deployment of separated bike and bus infrastructure and erode safety and equity for pedestrians and cyclists.

Int. No. 1362 (filed Aug. 14, 2025; stage: SPONSORSHIP) was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The matter is titled "A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to removing benchmarks for bus lanes and bicycle lanes and repealing certain definitions in relation thereto." Council Member Robert F. Holden is the primary sponsor. Co-sponsors are Vickie Paladino, Joann Ariola, and Inna Vernikov. The bill repeals the definitions of "protected bicycle lane" and "protected bus lane" and removes benchmark requirements from the streets master plan. Safety analysts note that removing explicit benchmarks and definitions weakens accountability for building separated cycling and bus infrastructure, likely decreasing street equity and safety-in-numbers for pedestrians and cyclists.

• File Int 1362-2025, NYC Council – Legistar, Published 2025-08-14

Aug 13 - Two SUVs collided at 101 Ave and 75 St. A left turn cut across. Metal hit metal. Three occupants hurt. A parked Tesla took a scrape. Failure to yield set it off.

Two Hyundai SUVs collided at 101 Avenue and 75 Street in Queens. One was going west. The other was turning left southbound. A parked Tesla was struck on its left side. Three people were reported injured: a 49-year-old male driver with chest pain, a 21-year-old rear passenger with leg injury, and a 21-year-old front passenger with abdominal pain. According to the police report, the listed factor was “Failure to Yield Right-of-Way.” The southbound SUV was “Making Left Turn,” and the westbound SUV was “Going Straight Ahead,” indicating a turn across oncoming traffic. Driver errors included Failure to Yield. The parked vehicle had no occupants.

• Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4834657 - Crashes, Persons, Vehicles , NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-10-02

Aug 12 - A car tore through an Astoria intersection. It struck a food truck. Two men died on the sidewalk. The driver died too. Metal, flesh, coffee, blood. The street swallowed them. It happened fast. No one stood a chance.

According to the New York Post (2025-08-12), an 84-year-old driver sped through 42nd Street and 19th Avenue in Astoria, Queens, crashing into a food truck and killing two customers and himself. Surveillance showed the car "going about 60 miles an hour" before impact. The article quotes a witness: "Someone screamed really loudly, and I just had stepped back, like right up to the sidewalk." The force severed a victim's foot. The crash highlights the lethal risk when drivers lose control at high speed in pedestrian zones. No charges were filed; the driver died at the scene.

• Speeding Car Slams Food Truck, Kills Two, New York Post, Published 2025-08-12

Aug 11 - Astoria shopkeepers fight a protected bike lane on 31st Street. They claim city plans threaten their business and public safety. The lawsuit lands in Queens Supreme Court. The city faces pushback, progress stalls.

NY1 reported on August 11, 2025, that over a dozen Astoria business owners filed suit to block a protected bike lane on 31st Street. The petition, lodged in Queens Supreme Court, claims the redesign from 36th Avenue to Newton Avenue would 'hurt their day-to-day operations and jeopardize public safety.' Owners accuse the city of acting in an 'arbitrary and capricious' way, moving forward despite objections. The case highlights ongoing tension between street safety projects and local business concerns. The outcome could shape future protected bike lane installations citywide.

• Astoria Businesses Sue Over Bike Lane, NY1, Published 2025-08-11

Aug 7 - City scales back Creedmoor plan. Density cut 27%. The car-free model dies. Walkers and cyclists lose safety and 'safety in numbers'. Local pols beat back bold urban design. Streets stay hostile. The chance for a people-first, low-car neighborhood vanishes.

Bill number: none — this is a policy statement, not legislation. Status: announced August 7, 2025; no committee review. Matter quoted: "NYC Could Have Its First Car-Free Neighborhood (But Won’t Get It Due To Revanchist Pols)." Eastern Queens Greenway condemned the decision to downscale the Creedmoor redevelopment from 2,775 units by 27 percent. Assembly Member Ed Braunstein and Council Member Joann Ariola opposed higher density and pressed the rollback. Empire State Development framed the change as a compromise. Safety impact: the cut reduces potential mode shift, walkability, and "safety in numbers" for pedestrians and cyclists, preserving car dependence and dangerous streets.

• NYC Could Have Its First Car-Free Neighborhood (But Won’t Get It Due To Revanchist Pols), Streetsblog NYC, Published 2025-08-07

Aug 6 - The driver of a motorcycle hit the center rear of an SUV on Pitkin Avenue. The 23-year-old motorcyclist was ejected and injured. Police recorded "Following Too Closely" and "Other Vehicular" as contributing factors.

According to the police report, the driver of a motorcycle struck the center rear of an SUV on Pitkin Avenue in Queens. The 23-year-old male motorcyclist was ejected and suffered abrasions to his entire body. The SUV carried a single driver who was listed with unspecified injuries in the report. Police listed "Following Too Closely" and "Other Vehicular" as contributing factors. The report notes center-front damage to the motorcycle and center-back damage to the SUV. The account in the report focuses on those driver errors and the physical damage; it does not list helmet use or signaling as contributing factors.

• Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4833405 - Crashes, Persons, Vehicles , NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-10-02