Comments on: Parks Dept. Truck Seriously Injures Wheelchair User in 8th Ave Bike Lane

By: Pride Mobility Scooters

Pride Mobility Scooters — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 18:51:16 +0000

These are mobility scooters, not race cars.They help those that have trouble walking. They are not meant to be a mode of long distance transportation. Five MPH would be pretty fast if you bumped into someone while shopping at the mall.

By: ED

ED — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:43:49 +0000

I’ve got no problem sharing that space with wheelchairs as long as they recognize it’s a bike lane and stay respectively off to the side which they generally do. People walking in the bike lane is way more annoying to me.
But WTF right does a truck that big have in a bike lane????

By: Gwin

Gwin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:02:18 +0000

Sarah – while that is definitely true in some parts of the city (i.e. sidewalks lacking the cutouts necessary for a wheelchair to get up on them), Hudson Street/8th Avenue is certainly not an area inhospitable to wheelchairs — I used to live down there.

By: Paul

Paul — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 06:01:08 +0000

The proper way to move trash can be seen here with this trash bike: http://bit.ly/4pnoaS

By: Liam Patrick

Liam Patrick — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 01:46:21 +0000

The same way trash collectors deal with placarded vehicles left parked during trash pickup hours – they throw the bags of trash into the truck from the curb.

By: Kaja

Kaja — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:33:16 +0000

> Not sure how trash is supposed to be collected if the truck can’t pull up next to the curb.

Are you serious, how do you they think they do it when there’s parked cars between the trash and the street? Tractor beams?

The dudes get out and walk eight feet. It’s easy you should try it some time.

By: Joanna

Joanna — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:39:40 +0000

According to NY1, the wheelchair tried to cross in front of the truck, thinking it was parked. The driver did not see the wheelchair and hit her.

http://ny1.com/1-all-boroughs-news-content/top_stories/108511/sanitation-truck-hits–injures-wheelchair-bound-woman/

Not sure how trash is supposed to be collected if the truck can’t pull up next to the curb.

By: Sarah Goodyear

Sarah Goodyear — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 23:20:16 +0000

Joe and Gwin,

Wheelchair users face innumerable obstacles when navigating sidewalks. I’m sure that many times the choice is between being in the street and not going anywhere.

By: Joe

Joe — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:47:36 +0000

Thank you Gwin! I see wheelchairs buzzing around the street (usually NOT in a bike lane) all the time and think it’s crazy. Does anyone know the law regarding this? Are they allowed to be in the street?

By: Gwin

Gwin — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:45:29 +0000

The truck obviously shouldn’t have been on the bike lane, but let’s be honest — the wheelchair shouldn’t have been there either. I’m not blaming the victim, mind you — but it astounds me how many people think their motorized wheelchairs are streetworthy. They, too, can be a danger to cyclists (and to pedestrians who aren’t paying attention).

By: Emily Litella

Emily Litella — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 20:27:26 +0000

The class 3 on-street bike lanes are intended for non-motorized vechicles. They were made just wide enough for exisiting city snow plows to traverse. No other vehicles, save emergency vehicles are authorized, end of story. The DPR driver took his chances and now must face the consequences, which we can reasonably assume will be insufficient to prevent a repeat of his risky behavior.

By: Damon

Damon — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:05:58 +0000

I saw this the whole thing happen. It definately was not intnetional. It was very sad and scary though.

By: Renee

Renee — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:54:50 +0000

So heartbreaking and so infuriating.
Are we going to have to start lobbying for bollards that stop vehicles from entering protected bike lanes? I hope not.

By: drewo

drewo — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:07:29 +0000

The “did not see” excuse is just as popular as:

“did not hear anything”
“the brakes did not work”
“the accelerator got stuck”

If the driver did “not see”, he should not be operating a motor vehicle.

By: BicyclesOnly

BicyclesOnly — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:49:19 +0000

As a practical matter, its just too inefficient to collect garbage on foot, because receptacles are spread out and the amount collected quickly becomes more than can be easily moved by human power. In the Parks, it is the green-coveralled and white-trucked DSNY personnel that do the lion’s share of the garbage collection. Having those guys do collection without their trucks means adjusting contracts, extra pay, increasing the workforce, etc.–it’s just impractical. What is feasible is:

(1) no garbage trucks on bike paths like this–they take up 90% of the room and if someone is trying to pass and the truck starts up, it is almost impossible not to have a collision. Make them use the nearest traffic lane. These guys know how to move the cans by rolling them along on the bottom rim; moving the cans that extra 14 feet is not a hardship.

(2) in the parks, garbage trucks should be equipped these trucks with devices that make beepers sound for 5 seconds before the truck is about to move after it has been stopped for more than 30 seconds–whether the truck is moving forward and backwards.

As for non-garbage activities, Parks should phase out the golf carts and replace them with custom pedicabs with cargo room enough for tools and waste removal. Official vehicles in the parks aren’t support to go mroe than 15 MPH anyway, that’s within the range of a pedicab.

By: Eric

Eric — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:47:02 +0000

There is no need to see if there is a policy about city vehicles driving in bike lanes, they can’t. They are subject to the same laws as everyone else who drives a car or truck, no exceptions.

By: cat

cat — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:42:16 +0000

I regularly see these things (not to mention police and other miscellaneous vehicles) going 30+ m.p.h. through Prospect Park during the afternoon.

By: Josh

Josh — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:42:10 +0000

Sickening.

By: Nathan H.

Nathan H. — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:37:26 +0000

A similar truck has been blocking the new Allen Street bicycle lane the past two mornings. It’s bad enough that they force people out into auto traffic that they have specifically followed a bicycle route to avoid, but if parks employees are going to occasionally “not see” and run over us (and they will–everyone makes mistakes), it’s absolutely critical that their large vehicles not be operated in these otherwise-safe spaces at all.

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:34:55 +0000

Yearly full-day driver’s classes! Sorry for the triple post, but I’m mad about my mostly separate 8-foot bike lane being blocked by large trucks every morning this week!