Bicyclist Killed In Brooklyn Accident, Residents Say It Could Have Been Avoided
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The death of a bicyclist in Brooklyn has local leaders demanding a crackdown on truck drivers who go off route.
The man killed on Sixth Avenue lived just blocks away, and was headed home on Wednesday morning when an unauthorized truck cut his ride short, CBS2's Valerie Castro reported.
Friends honored the life of 33-year-old James Gregg with flowers and candles placed at the corner of Sixth Avenue and Sterling Place where he was killed.
"He was always on the bike, so he was probably out for his morning bike ride," Mike Keenan said.
Police said Gregg was headed south on Sixth Avenue in the same direction as a large truck, when somehow he collided with the back tires.
"He may have found himself squeezed a bit and not realized the truck was passing him, and he got clipped by the back tires. It's very tragic," Keenan said.
Surveillance video shows the truck stop in the middle of the intersection just after the accident happened.
Many people heard the collision.
"I was asleep and I heard what I think was a screech and a bang and a screech of tires," Peter Foges said.
Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams called attention the fact that large 18-wheelers like the one in this accident are not permitted to drive on Sixth Avenue without the proper permit.
"Sixth Avenue is a residential. It's not a truck route," Adams said.
Police said the driver in the accident was issued a summons for driving off route.
Residents said despite regulations trucks often roll through, and they say police rarely stop them.
"Open tolerance of it by the Police Department is like a de facto acceptance. We've had very little summonses given," Keenan said.
Adams called the practice unacceptable.
"We cannot continue to have trucks and other vehicles in places where they're not supposed to be," he said.
The street safety advocacy group Transportation Alternatives said this death should serve as a call to the city to add more bike lanes, and aggressively fight against reckless driving.
