Phase 2 Of Reopening Raises Concerns About Driver, Pedestrian Safety In New York City
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- With New York City entering Phase 2 of reopening on Monday, more people will be heading back to work, which means more traffic.
Dash cam video shows a car whip through a Bronx intersection, knocking cyclists and pedestrians to the ground before jumping the curb and pummeling an SUV and a coffee cart.
Witness Jansewo Jalloh pulled out two women who were trapped in the wreckage.
"I look in, I open the window and take out the two ladies inside," he said.
This happened mid-morning Wednesday on Fordham Road and Jerome Avenue. Eight people were injured, but all are expected to recover. The 43-year-old driver has been charged with aggravated vehicular assault among others.
RELATED STORY: Shocking Video Shows Car Plow Through Bronx Intersection, Hitting Several Pedestrians And Vehicles
"What we are seeing is that there's an increase of speeding," said Ydanis Rodriguez, the City Council transportation chair.
Rodriguez says the Department of Transportation needs to be prepared to protect pedestrians when New York City enters Phase 2 next week.
"We may have a false sense of security driving out there thinking that it's been three, four months for some people that haven't driven," said Carlos Caponera with the GPS tracking system company Teletrac Navman.
Teletrac Navman analyzed thousands of commercial vehicle routes during the first month of the pandemic and found while there was less mileage, there was more speeding, cornering and rolling stops.
"In some cases, drivers aren't as alert as before because there's just not many events happening on the road, but now as more vehicles come online, we really just have to be vigilant and really aware of the surroundings as we take the road as commuters ourselves," Caponera told CBS2's Ali Bauman.
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Seven cyclists have been killed on the road citywide so far this year, with three of those incidents happening in the past month.
In May, 311 had a 600% increase in drag racing complaints compared to May of last year.
"As we are getting ready to reopen the city, we also should be ready to restore the $10 million cut that the mayor has made to Vision Zero," Rodriguez said.
On Friday, Mayor Bill de Blasio was asked what he plans to do in the coming weeks for street safety.
"More enforcement, which I think is crucial. More of the cameras coming into play. That's what works and that's what we'll do," de Blasio said.
As far as what the DOT plans to do, days before Phase 2, that's still unclear.
