Gramercy Bleeds While Leaders Stall: Demand 20 MPH Now

Gramercy: Jan 1, 2022 - Aug 4, 2025

The Toll in Plain Sight

In Gramercy, the street does not forgive. Since 2022, one person has died and seven have been seriously injured in traffic crashes here. In the last year alone, 103 people were hurt—five left with life-altering wounds. The numbers do not flinch. They do not lie.

Just weeks ago, a 65-year-old e-bike rider was struck on Second Avenue. The driver fled, leaving the man with a crushed skull. He was found unconscious, bleeding in the road. The driver later told police, “he fled initially because he did not have a license” (West Side Spirit).

On East 23rd Street, a cyclist was hit by a pickup truck. His leg was crushed. He wore a helmet. It did not matter. The truck kept going north. The cyclist was left on the pavement, his bike twisted beside him (NYC Open Data).

Patterns That Do Not Break

Cars and SUVs caused most of the harm—71 pedestrian injuries since 2022. Trucks and buses added four more. Bikes, too, played a part, with ten injuries, two of them serious. The street does not care what you drive. It only counts the bodies.

A resident said it plain: “No one stops at these stop signs. We see people go through these red lights all the time” (CBS New York). The law is a rumor. The pain is real.

Leadership: Steps and Silences

Council Member Carlina Rivera has backed a bill to ban parking near crosswalks. Assembly Member Harvey Epstein co-sponsored a bill to force repeat speeders to install speed-limiting tech. Senator Kristen Gonzalez voted yes on a law to curb repeat dangerous drivers. These are steps. They are not enough.

The city can lower the speed limit to 20 mph. It has not. The street waits. The next crash is already on the calendar.

Call to Action

This is not fate. It is policy. Call your council member. Call the mayor. Demand a 20 mph speed limit. Demand real enforcement. Demand streets that put people first. Do not wait until the next siren.