"There have been 18 cyclist fatalities in New York so far this year. Perhaps drivers should face more serious consequences."

"But without a systemic rethinking of the primacy of cars in urban life and the implementation of more aggressive ways to de-incentivize driving and particularly careless driving, it is hard to imagine a new world emerging."

I can't recall a time since he was elected prosecutor that Keith Henderson has "held accountable" a driver who has killed a non-driver. Maybe I missed one, but I think the trend is clear. It isn't a very good trend, either.

We’ve Blamed Traffic Deaths on Bicyclists Since 1880. What About Drivers?, by Ginia Bellafante (New York Times)

There have been 18 cyclist fatalities in New York so far this year. Perhaps drivers should face more serious consequences.

 ... However much cyclists might need to heighten their awareness on the roads, cars and trucks kill people in far greater volume than cyclists kill people. Of the 711 pedestrians who have died in traffic collusions since 2014, only four have been killed by bicycles.

The law, however, protects some forms of human error more assiduously than others. In the same week that a driver was punished with a summons for opening a car door in such a way that it led to a young woman’s death, Juan Rodriguez, a social worker and the father of 1-year old twins, was charged with manslaughter for accidentally closing the door to his car, leaving his children in the back seat, where they died from the excessive heat. He believed that he had dropped them off at day care, in a scenario that has become tragically common among distracted parents since the late 1990s.

Just over a week ago, the mayor introduced a $58.4 million plan directed at promoting bike safety in the wake of the current crisis in fatalities. The plan calls for the installation of more bike lanes, the redesign of certain intersections and various traffic signaling adjustments ...

Here and there, "dislodging those corporate Democrats ... is a critical front in the effort to actually make America great again."

Writing at The Nation, John Nichols, finds reasons to celebrate New York's 2018 state primary results.

Big Wins by Down-Ballot Progressives Are Going to Transform New York Politics

... The change in Albany will be dramatic as a new generation of insurgents and reformers arrives. (Governor Andrew) Cuomo is likely to return with a more progressive bent—having been pushed left by the (Cynthia) Nixon challenge. The Democratic nominee for attorney general, Tish James, has served for many years in New York City posts as a labor-aligned progressive. And the legislature will be populated by a state senators like Alessandra Biaggi, who claimed her victory as a signal that New Yorkers would no longer “tolerate Democrats who would be empowering Republicans.”

If the local Democratic Party is to be purged in like fashion, candidates who aren't afraid to describe unclothed passers-by need to step forward and take "down-ballot" into places like the 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th council districts.

First, the bigger picture.

Yes, let's wipe out Trump. But take neoliberal Democrats with him, too, by David Sirota (The Guardian)

After a scorching summer of discontent, Donald Trump’s endless tweets and scandals have given Democrats their best chance to retake Congress since George W Bush’s second term. And yet, insurgent progressives are not limiting themselves to dethroning Republicans: they are taking aim at corporate-friendly Democrats within their own party, too.

Amid an upsurge of populist energy that has alarmed the Democratic establishment, a new wave of left-leaning insurgents have been using Democratic primaries to wage a fierce war on the party’s corporate wing. And, as in past presidential primary battles, many Democratic consultants, politicians and pundits have insisted that the party must prioritize unity and resist grassroots pressure to support a more forceful progressive agenda.

Not surprisingly, much of that analysis comes from those with career stakes in the status quo. Their crude attempts to stamp out any dissent or intraparty discord negates a stark truth: liberal America’s pattern of electing corporate Democrats – rather than progressives – has been a big part of the problem that led to Trump and that continues to make America’s economic and political system a neo-feudal dystopia.

Dislodging those corporate Democrats, then, is not some counterproductive distraction – it is a critical front in the effort to actually make America great again.

Sirota surveys a long train of abuses and usurpations.

Recounting this sordid record is not to dispute Democrats’ occasional successes. Some blue locales continue to periodically pass progressive initiatives, most recently on climate change, net neutrality and minimum wages. These are undoubtedly important, but they have for the most part been incremental at a time when the economic and ecological crises we face demand far more radical action.

The current iteration of the Democratic party has proven time and again that it is not merely uninterested in that kind of radicalism, but actively opposed to it. Party powerbrokers and multimillion-dollar MSNBC pundits would prefer an election focused exclusively on the palace dramas surrounding Trump’s boorish outbursts and outrageous personal behavior. They don’t want an election focused on the bipartisan neoliberalism that has wrought the desperation and mayhem unfolding outside the palace walls.

Out here, though, economic reality has proven the scripted red-versus-blue theater to be a bread-and-circuses distraction from the fact that both parties are culpable for this moment of crisis. America is now in backlash mode, producing candidates in Democratic states who are boldly challenging the party’s decrepit establishment.

After briefly reviewing a list of these candidates, Sirota brings it home.

These progressive challengers and others like them have each run unique campaigns, but all have embodied the core belief that anti-Trump rhetoric alone is not an adequate response to the emergencies at hand. Democrats’ record in liberal states and liberal cities over the last decade makes a strong case that they are correct – and so now the revolution is on.

That may bewilder the Democrats’ permanent political class that has gotten used to steamrolling the public, losing elections and still remaining in charge of the party – but, really, the only confusing thing about this uprising is that it took this long to finally ignite.

As noted previously, local prospects for Democratic Party reform are slim, although much will depend on the next 52 days.

Analysis: Election results this November will offer clues as to the progress (or regress) of the 2019 municipal election cycle in New Albany.

If the "blue wave" doesn't materialize in Floyd County, it's likely the party's current municipal power brokers will go to any length to remain ensconced. They're entrenched and waiting better times outside the city limits, but still capable of wetting beaks in the city.

Do we even have enough progressive voters to support candidates who might seek office? I'll leave that one for another time, along with a analysis of local issues which define "progressive."

Hint: the street grid is a perfectly applicable social justice issue. 

Today's Gahan-Free-Zone: "Public Housing Works: Lessons from Vienna and Singapore."

I try not to miss any opportunity to publish a photo of the blocks-long Karl-Marx-Hof apartment building in Vienna. It's public housing, according to Vienna's unique scheme.

When can we leave? "Vienna Offers Affordable and Luxurious Housing."

Here's a comparison of public housing in Vienna, Singapore and (briefly) New York City. I've cut to the conclusion, but the whole piece is worth reading.

Public Housing Works: Lessons from Vienna and Singapore, by Anna Bergren Miller (Shareable)

Lessons

Neither Vienna’s nor Singapore’s affordable housing programs are perfect. Yet both have achieved a level of success, measured in terms of both quantity and quality, that remains elusive for most American cities. What distinguishes these two models is their broad definition of social housing. In the United States, public housing is essentially crisis management. It offers temporary support to households who would not be able to afford housing without municipal assistance. Vienna and Singapore take a longer view, in the belief that offering subsidies to a majority of residents will benefit both society and the economy. As a result, the Viennese and Singaporean governments consistently invest both money and political capital in affordable housing, without fear of disrupting private housing market.

An effective affordable housing program benefits both residents and the community at large. Research demonstrates [pdf] that access to high-quality housing improves resident health incomes by reducing exposure to stressors and acting as a point of delivery for health care services. Affordable housing can also support residents' education [pdf], by preventing disruptions associated with residential mobility. On a community level, the construction and maintenance of public housing provides jobs and boosts the local construction industry. In addition, affordable housing supports the local economy by leaving residents with more disposable income. Affordable housing located near businesses provides employers with workers more likely to be productive, and less likely to move because they are overspending on housing.

Beyond the practical considerations lies a moral dilemma. Where Vienna and Singapore understand affordable housing as a right, American public housing programs—rhetoric aside—treat affordability as a privilege. If the latter is acceptable, then more of the same will work just fine. If not, it is time to move affordable housing from the periphery to the center of municipal policy.

"The vernacular of pornography is now embedded in our culture. Even if you’re not consuming pornography, you’re consuming its logic."

It's neither an apology nor a boast. The simple fact is I watch almost no television apart from documentaries, most of which are viewed on-line.

I haven't seen a minute of any series mentioned in this article, and probably won't watch The Deuce, either.

Rather, I read and write, and typically the way it works for me is that I read a piece about a television show, as below, and find myself intrigued by the subject matter.

Then I go out and find a book to read more about it. It's just a better use of time this way. Different strokes, and all, but "a ready-made critique of market capitalism" is precisely the sort of exercise I cherish -- so long as it isn't necessary to spend time watching it.

David Simon: ‘If you’re not consuming porn, you’re still consuming its logic’, by David Smith (The Guardian)

Alongside longtime collaborator George Pelecanos, The Wire’s creator talks about their new TV drama, The Deuce, which examines porn’s impact on US society

 ... (David) Simon is animated by the perpetual struggle between capital and labour and believes that, after the ravages of Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher and globalisation, and the anti-establishment anger that produced Donald Trump and Brexit, the argument for unions and collective bargaining is as vital as ever. Which brought him to The Deuce, his ambitious new HBO series charting the rise of the porn industry in 1970s New York.

“What I stumbled into seemed to be a ready-made critique of market capitalism, and what happens when labour has no collective voice, and that seemed to be apt for this moment because I think a lot of the lessons of the 20th century are going to have to be learned all over again thanks to Reagan and Thatcher and all the neoliberal and libertarian argument that has come after,” says Simon, 57, unfailingly intense as he leans forward on a sofa.

Here's an idea: "Disabled New Yorkers Sue for Safer Streets."

It's about a federal class-action lawsuit filed in 2014 against the city of New York, "suing the city for violating the federal Americans with Disabilities Act."

The most recent link comes first (December 8, 2015):

Center for Independence of the Disabled New York (CIDNY), et al. v. City of New York, et al.

In June 2015, a federal district judge denied New York City’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit. This important development will allow persons with mobility and vision disabilities to be heard in court on the matter of safe access to curb cuts and pedestrian routes.

The broader explanation comes next (July 30, 2014):

Disabled New Yorkers Sue for Safer Streets, by Brigid Bergin (WNYC News)

When Myrna Driffin walks down the street, she negotiates her way through crowds of people more focused on their smartphones than they are on her.

“I wonder who’s the blind one then, let’s put it that way,” Driffin jokes.

The 57-year-old was diagnosed with acute congenital glaucoma when she was two and lost her vision completely by the time she went to college. She lives on 23rd Street in Manhattan and walks home from an internship at the Center for Independence of the Disabled near Union Square. Her guide dog Polly, a gentle golden retriever-Labrador mix, walks on her left side.

But maneuvering city sidewalks and across intersections poses an ongoing risk. Even with Polly, Driffin said there are times when she’s walked straight into traffic.

“People either holler, ‘Miss, miss, you’re in the road’ or else I hear them beeping at me,” said Driffin. “That’s real scary.”

Driffin is one of two named plaintiffs in a federal class-action lawsuit filed in United States District Court on Wednesday, suing the city for violating the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, which celebrated its 24th anniversary last week. Advocates argue too many city sidewalks lack proper curb cuts and are not accessible to people with disabilities.

Mayor Bill de Blasio has made pedestrian safety a top priority of his Vision Zero transportation plan, but the suit argues the city has not done enough to make sure the streets are safe for all New Yorkers, of all abilities.

NYC express buses, and how the Indiana Regional Cities Initiative cannot do them here.

I mention this not because the idea of express buses is equally relevant to New York City and metro Louisville.

Rather, as explained at the Indiana Regional Cities Initiative meeting I attended two Mondays ago, out of a total of $434 million in wish list items compiled by One Southern Indiana's committee (and taking them at face value, and ignoring the hours we've yet to spend trying to determine whether the initiative itself is worth consideration), $252 million would go to make River Ridge even more humongous than it is already, while the amount pledged to developing regional public transit, apart from expanding the Greenway's pedways before it's finished crossing Silver Creek, comes to ... that's right.

$0.00.

Notions like this must wait for a later plan. In short, excepting the Greenway, the bulk of this unprecedented investment, which probably isn't, although we shan't talk about it now, goes toward reinforcing the prevailing auto-centrism that already plagues us.

I almost forgot, but in New York City, they're adding express buses.

Express Bus Service Shows Promise in New York, by Michael Kimmelman (New York Times)

Last week, the administration of Mayor Bill de Blasio unveiled its first express bus line: the 86th Street crosstown, running back and forth between York Avenue on the east side and Broadway on the west. There was a news conference to celebrate, at Columbus Avenue. Polly Trottenberg, the mayor’s transportation commissioner, hailed “modest investments” yielding dividends in terms of saved time for long-beleaguered riders, to which Ben Kallos, a city councilman, added that time saved translates into revenue for businesses whose taxes help pay for further transit improvements: a virtuous circle.

The route is not actually full-dress express service. It doesn’t include a dedicated, camera-policed lane all the way across town or traffic lights programmed to stay green when buses approach. There are just short segments of bus lanes that let buses jump traffic queues at strategic places. Even so, with 24,000 daily riders, 86th Street is notorious for endless lines of passengers waiting to swipe their cards. Any upgrade helps.

"The inanity of our bread and circuses" via beer grants, jobs, lumbersexuals & LegoLand Dubai.

Talk about a complex piece of writing. It's food for thought in multiple courses. The major point of the essay is government incentives for economic development, but this doesn't do it justice.

First and last paragraphs only ... enjoy the read.

Beer Grants, Jobs, Lumbersexuals & LegoLand at Wigwam: A Home Economy Journal

I was sitting in Yummy Taco on 17k in Newburgh last December having lunch with a friend. We met a dozen years ago, when he was running a small eatery on Main Street in Beacon and I ran a second-hand furniture place next door. As we sampled what he called the fusion menu—the place was obviously a former Chinese restaurant that had added a few Mexican dishes—he mentioned the large grant given to Jalor Properties, LLC to turn an old factory building in Beacon into a brewery and taproom. There was a decent helping of skepticism in his tone ...

 ... The inanity of our bread and circuses, by definition inane to begin with, has reached a screeching apex, and it is only down, down, from here. While Dubai and LegoLand may be extreme examples, Beacon’s economy is by no means exempt from the complexities brought on by vast inputs of energy. In an upcoming post, we’ll look at the job situation from a local historical perspective, and see how this ever-increasing complexity has landed us in a bit of a pickle. Meanwhile, a raising of the glasses to Jalor Properties. Whatever else it may aspire to be, at least it will be a place where something useful is made. The beer grant for Beacon certainly makes better use of our money than a theme park; long after the last tourist has had a tasting, the brewing kettles can continue to be a source of jobs, and produce a crafty brew that should help former Model Citizens face the prospects of long-term unemployment.

REWIND: "Death by Car," and other all-too common occurrences.

There was a horrific accident at the Clark Memorial (a.k.a. 2nd Street) Bridge yesterday.

A concrete truck hit a woman at the pedestrian crosswalk on the Louisville side, and dragged her some distance before the driver even realized what had happened. She died of blunt force trauma.

In the aftermath of this story, about the only thing we can be sure of is that the driver will face no charges. Seldom, if ever, is a driver charged in Louisville after an accident involving pedestrians or bicyclists. What's even more depressing is the ritualistic public response: "It's a tragedy, all right, but then again, if walkers just stayed out of our way ... "

It sounds somewhat like the "cure" for gun violence, as proffered by angry white Americans.

From: If we all carried guns, there'd be no gun violence.

To: If we'd all just drive, there'd be no walkers or cyclists injured and killed.

And so I'm criticized for pointing to the stark, raving contradiction in New Albany between monstrous trucks speeding down neighborhood streets, and the city's oft-stated intent to insure "quality of life" in neighborhoods. How dare I challenge the unquestioned primacy of football-field-sized vehicles in an ostensibly "modern" economy! Who are we to imply that we have any say in where we live, and the conditions therein?

Tell it to the family of the girl killed yesterday.

Sorry, but I won't shut up. Following is a reprint from 2012, in which it is explained that if you're looking for the ultimate in non-enforcement regimes, those refusing to hold drivers of motorized vehicles accountable for the mayhem they inflict rank quite highly, indeed.

---

Kolker's piece is a long read, but worth the time. I've ranted on this topic previously.

ON THE AVENUES: Afoot in NA with the 69% solution.

All our sidewalks might be rebuilt, and even the occasional bike lane striped, but unless New Albany is prepared to classify systemic discrimination against the urban zone’s persecuted walkers and bicyclists as part and parcel of a fully funded enforcement mechanism, under the auspices of a human rights commission, things won’t get any better around here.

Okay, I’m exaggerating, though only slightly.

Back to Kolker. He begins by telling the story of a fatality, then unravels cause and effect.

Death by Car, by Robert Kolker (New York)

Walkers, motorists, and bikers are locked in a perpetual struggle for territory, frequently with untoward results. In the past decade, more New Yorkers were killed or seriously hurt in or by cars than were killed or seriously hurt by guns ...

... Safety advocates’ biggest complaint, however, is with the New York City Police Department, which, they say, lets drivers do whatever they want. “The NYPD is still stuck in the mind-set that some crashes are just inevitable—the price of living in the big city,” says Paul Steely White, the executive director of Transportation Alternatives, a leading advocacy organization that campaigns for better bicycling, walking, and public transit in New York. “If you stay at the scene and you’re not drunk, you can pretty much get away with murder.”

This is reminiscent of the numerous times in the past decade -- possible as many as once -- when motorists striking bicyclists in Louisville actually had charges placed against them.

We're provided context as to what alleviates the problem, which as usual indicates that the detested Europeans are light years ahead of us.

European cities cracked down on speeding cars—bringing the speed limit down to 30 kilometers, or 20 miles, per hour, and down even further in some areas to something called “walking speed.” Many of those cities also worked to maintain a balance between cars on the one hand and pedestrians and cyclists on the other, in terms of who dominated the roads.

But in America, where the car is king, such measures have been adopted only reluctantly.

Those of us who walk and bike regularly understand all too well that thousands of pounds of metal combined with unnecessary speed kill.

In 2010, in keeping with Bloomberg’s penchant for data-driven analysis, Sadik-Khan issued the results of a report the DOT had undertaken on pedestrian safety. The idea, she says, was to help the city learn “who gets hit, why they get hit, where they get hit, and how they get hit.” The prime culprit turned out to be speeding cars. The study noted that a pedestrian struck at 40 miles per hour is four times more likely to die than one struck at 30 miles per hour, who in turn is six times more likely to die than one struck at 20 miles per hour. The report also showed that 74 percent of the car crashes resulting in fatalities and serious injuries took place at intersections, not highways. The most likely way to die on the street in a car-related crash in New York, the DOT’s data suggests, is the same way Jessica Dworkin died—at the hands of a driver who was turning at an intersection. Most of those incidents do not appear to be the pedestrian’s fault: 57 percent of those crashes occurred while the pedestrian was crossing with the signal. The problem, in other words, is cars.

Here's the kicker.

Even if all the improvements they hope for were to happen, neighbors are convinced that redesigning the curbs and defining the lanes would only go so far. On a corner like Houston and Sixth, Secunda says, “You need a lot of traffic agents. And the police just haven’t provided them.” Transportation Alternatives has collected records of major accidents that suggest that the intersection had at least 41 crashes that injured pedestrians and cyclists between 1995 and 2009. NYPD crash reports for this year show that between August 2011 and July 2012, there were 34 crashes that injured seven people. But from January through August 1 of this year, the entire First and Sixth precincts, which share responsibility for that intersection, wrote just 46 speeding tickets and 186 failure-to-yield tickets.

Defective headlights, meanwhile, received 703 tickets.

Read the article, okay?

Guerrilla signage helps slow NYC traffic speeds. Actually enforcing traffic laws (really?) also seems to help.

Let's see. If citizens do it themselves, and the city does what it's supposed to be doing ...

A DIY Approach to Slowing a City's Cars, by Sarah Goodyear (The Atlantic Cities)

At first glance, they look an awful lot like official city speed-limit signs, bold black letters on a white background. "20 Is Plenty," they say.

Look closer, these signs are not NYC DOT issue. First, they're made of plastic, rather than aluminum, and affixed to signposts with zip ties rather than bolts. They are not reflective, the way real street signs are. And at the bottom, in white letters on black, is the logo of the DIY street safety action group Right of Way ...

City officials in New Albany might be more interested in these next two paragraphs, seeing as they've lately taken to insisting that laws to keep semi-trailer-pass-through traffic off downtown streets (i.e, weight limits) actually do exist, even if there exists neither will nor a plan to enforce them.

Vision Zero? Ironically, we have it here, too. We call it Zero Vision.

 ... The signs are headed up to Albany today as part of a lobbying effort led by a new group called Families for Safe Streets, led by New Yorkers whose children, parents, spouses, and other loved ones have been killed by cars. The group is calling for lower speed limits and aggressive implementation of Mayor Bill De Blasio's Vision Zero plan, which incorporates improved street design and tougher traffic law enforcement.

That last part seems to be ramping up already, with WNYC reporting that tickets for dangerous violations such as speeding and failure to yield are up as much as tenfold in February 2014 over the same month the previous year (although in some precincts, such as the 84th in Brooklyn, they were starting from a negligible base of only 10 total tickets for speeding, failure to yield, and ignoring a signal).

"NYC Study Finds Protected Bicycle Lanes Boost Local Business."

Given New Albany's fairly compact layout inside the beltway, the utility of this approach embraces more than just business growth, although one imagines that economics should matter, even to folks living on Corydon Pike.

It also provides a convenient way to link neighborhoods with downtown and with each other.

Whether or not protected bike lanes are the right objective here can be debated, but the overall veracity of reconsidering our city's street grid for the contemporary world is far clearer. These streets were changed 40 years ago to reflect an emptying downtown and fear accompanying it. Now that downtown is filling back up, streets must be rationalized to reflect it. Otherwise, the goal of revitalization is being contradicted on a daily basis by infrastructural stasis.

NYC Study Finds Protected Bicycle Lanes Boost Local Business, by Mary Lauran Hall (America Bikes)

The road to recovery is in sight, and it has a bike lane.

The typical city street is a busy place. People riding bikes, walking, driving cars, and operating buses all have somewhere to to go and want to get there safely — and quickly.

But while we normally think of streets as pipelines for people and goods, public streets are about more than just moving from point A to point B. They're also corridors for public life. Streets are places where locals discover new hole-in-the-wall stores and restaurants, where window shoppers duck into shops to peruse, and where children convince their parents to stop — just for ONE second — to buy a cup of hot chocolate.

In other words, streets can also grow local economies.

A new study from the New York Department of Transportation shows that streets that safely accommodate bicycle and pedestrian travel are especially good at boosting small businesses, even in a recession.

Redesigning streets are good the economy. Rinse, repeat.

New York City seems to think that redesigning the street grid helps the economy, and heavens, there are real numbers to support this thinking. Are you a business owner in downtown New Albany? These are the type of things you need to be thinking about. Thanks to WA for the links.

NYC DOT Study: Street Redesign Good for the Economy, by Kate Hinds (Transportation Nation)

New York City’s Department of Transportation says redesigned streets have been very, very good to small businesses. A new report says that retail sales are up along city streets that have bike paths, pedestrian plazas, slow zones, or select bus service.

Imagine that: "Creating great public spaces while also maintaining the flow of traffic."

Measuring the Street: New Metrics for 21st Century Streets

New York City’s streets are constantly called on to the meet new and varied needs of a growing, dynamic, 21st Century city – and to do this in a complex environment where there is little opportunity to expand the existing footprint. How do city leaders address these challenges and measure their success? This report discusses key approaches to street design projects, and how results can be measured against goals for safety, serving all users and creating great public spaces while also maintaining the flow of traffic. Using a cross-section of recent NYCDOT street design projects, this report details the metrics NYCDOT uses to evaluate street projects, and illustrates how measuring results can show progress toward safe, sustainable, livable and economically competitive streets.

"Death by Car," and other all-too common occurrences.

Kolker's piece is a long read, but worth the time. I've ranted on this topic previously.

ON THE AVENUES: Afoot in NA with the 69% solution.

All our sidewalks might be rebuilt, and even the occasional bike lane striped, but unless New Albany is prepared to classify systemic discrimination against the urban zone’s persecuted walkers and bicyclists as part and parcel of a fully funded enforcement mechanism, under the auspices of a human rights commission, things won’t get any better around here.

Okay, I’m exaggerating, though only slightly.

Back to Kolker. He begins by telling the story of a fatality, then unravels cause and effect.

Death by Car, by Robert Kolker (New York)

Walkers, motorists, and bikers are locked in a perpetual struggle for territory, frequently with untoward results. In the past decade, more New Yorkers were killed or seriously hurt in or by cars than were killed or seriously hurt by guns ...

... Safety advocates’ biggest complaint, however, is with the New York City Police Department, which, they say, lets drivers do whatever they want. “The NYPD is still stuck in the mind-set that some crashes are just inevitable—the price of living in the big city,” says Paul Steely White, the executive director of Transportation Alternatives, a leading advocacy organization that campaigns for better bicycling, walking, and public transit in New York. “If you stay at the scene and you’re not drunk, you can pretty much get away with murder.”

This is reminiscent of the numerous times in the past decade -- possible as many as once -- when motorists striking bicyclists in Louisville actually had charges placed against them.

We're provided context as to what alleviates the problem, which as usual indicates that the detested Europeans are light years ahead of us.

European cities cracked down on speeding cars—bringing the speed limit down to 30 kilometers, or 20 miles, per hour, and down even further in some areas to something called “walking speed.” Many of those cities also worked to maintain a balance between cars on the one hand and pedestrians and cyclists on the other, in terms of who dominated the roads.

But in America, where the car is king, such measures have been adopted only reluctantly.

Those of us who walk and bike regularly understand all too well that thousands of pounds of metal combined with unnecessary speed kill.

In 2010, in keeping with Bloomberg’s penchant for data-driven analysis, Sadik-Khan issued the results of a report the DOT had undertaken on pedestrian safety. The idea, she says, was to help the city learn “who gets hit, why they get hit, where they get hit, and how they get hit.” The prime culprit turned out to be speeding cars. The study noted that a pedestrian struck at 40 miles per hour is four times more likely to die than one struck at 30 miles per hour, who in turn is six times more likely to die than one struck at 20 miles per hour. The report also showed that 74 percent of the car crashes resulting in fatalities and serious injuries took place at intersections, not highways. The most likely way to die on the street in a car-related crash in New York, the DOT’s data suggests, is the same way Jessica Dworkin died—at the hands of a driver who was turning at an intersection. Most of those incidents do not appear to be the pedestrian’s fault: 57 percent of those crashes occurred while the pedestrian was crossing with the signal. The problem, in other words, is cars.

Here's the kicker.

Even if all the improvements they hope for were to happen, neighbors are convinced that redesigning the curbs and defining the lanes would only go so far. On a corner like Houston and Sixth, Secunda says, “You need a lot of traffic agents. And the police just haven’t provided them.” Transportation Alternatives has collected records of major accidents that suggest that the intersection had at least 41 crashes that injured pedestrians and cyclists between 1995 and 2009. NYPD crash reports for this year show that between August 2011 and July 2012, there were 34 crashes that injured seven people. But from January through August 1 of this year, the entire First and Sixth precincts, which share responsibility for that intersection, wrote just 46 speeding tickets and 186 failure-to-yield tickets.

Defective headlights, meanwhile, received 703 tickets.

Read the article, okay?

Henry Miller, on growing up in New York City.