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“Ghost Bike” Memorials Continue in the Bronx in Tribute to Deceased Bike Riders

 

On Saturday, Oct. 24, Streetmemorials.org and members of Five Boro Bike Club, joined the Bronx Committee for Transportation Alternative for the installation of a “Ghost Bike” memorial on the corner of Grand Concourse and 180th Street in the Bronx, dedicated to Victorio Hilario-Guzman, 37, a delivery bike rider who was hit and killed at the location by a “hit n run” driver on Sept. 23.
Photo courtesy of Kevin Daloia

Members and volunteers from Bronx Committee for Transportation Alternatives have been holding their monthly “Complete the Concourse,” protest bike rides that aim to raise awareness of the risks to both pedestrians and cyclists of traveling on the Grand Concourse. Transportation Alternative’s mission is to reclaim New York City’s streets from the automobile, and advocate for better cycling, walking, and public transit for all New Yorkers.

 

During an Oct. 24 ride, Streetmemorials.org representatives and members of Five Boro Bike Club, joined Bronx Transportation Alternatives for the installation of a “Ghost Bike” memorial on the corner of Grand Concourse and 180th Street. Sadly, Ghost Bike memorials have become more and more common on New York City streets. They consist of installing silvery-white painted bikes and flowers at the sites of bike accidents in memory and tribute to the bike victims killed, many of whom are often immigrant, delivery workers.

 

The Oct. 24 ceremony in the Bronx was in honor of Victorio Hilario-Guzman, 37, a delivery bike rider who was struck and killed by a “hit and run” driver on Sept. 23 in the Bronx. Guzman’s brothers attended the tribute, and spoke of wanting justice for their fallen brother. According to Transportation Alternatives, Hilario-Guzman was the fourth bike delivery person to be killed on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx in 2020.

 

Bronx News12 had previously reported on the incident, and the 46th precinct had set up a digital sign at the location asking the public for information about the deadly crash, in case anyone could help with its investigation.

 

Since that hit and run incident, Hilario Guzman’s family has been holding regular, public awareness rallies every Thursday at 5 p.m. at the same corner where the deadly crash occurred, to highlight the dangers faced by cyclists. Hilario-Guzman was the seventh bike rider killed in the Bronx this year, a consequence, perhaps, of increased food and home deliveries amid the coronavirus pandemic. Another reason is excessive speeding by drivers, according to Transportation Alternatives. Whatever the reason, they say there were zero bike collision deaths in the borough in 2019.

 

Kevin Daloia, an avid cyclist and one of the volunteers who participates in the regular, protest bike rides, told the Norwood News that he has raised the issue of bike safety at various Bronx community board meetings across the borough, because the boards can influence the City’s Department of Transportation (DOT) in relation to highway renovations that run through local jurisdictions.

On Saturday, Oct. 24, Streetmemorials.org and members of Five Boro Bike Club, joined the Bronx Committee for Transportation Alternative for the installation of a “Ghost Bike” memorial on the corner of Grand Concourse and 180th Street in the Bronx, dedicated to Victorio Hilario-Guzman, 37, a delivery bike rider who was hit and killed at the location by a “hit n run” driver on Sept. 23.
Photo courtesy of Kevin Daloia

Daloia said he has experienced resistance from some community board members when it comes to the issue of bike lanes in the borough, saying some people don’t seem to care because they, themselves, don’t use bikes, including some members who are on the older side. He said such members are sometimes more concerned that bike lanes will knock out available parking in their neighborhoods.

 

He added that bike advocates feel the DOT needs to “push past the community boards” and make the Grand Concourse safer for the tens of thousands of people who live and work along what he calls “the most dangerous roads in the Bronx.” He said this need is urgent given the Citi Bike program has been expanded, more people are driving than using the subway amid the pandemic, and many others continue to use alternate ways to commute, including cycling.

 

Daloia did not specify which particular community boards provided resistance to the bike lane plan proposals. Norwood News reached out to Bronx Community Board 7 and was informed by District Manager Ischia Bravo that, since her time in the role, CB7 has always been supportive.

Nov. 25 Statement by Transportation Alternatives Executive Director, Danny Harris
Image via Twitter

Daloia outlined one concrete example of the type of safety concerns that exist in the borough. “The issue is that the bike lanes from 161st Street to Mosholu Parkway still need to be completed,” he said, explaining that there are new medians in place i.e. the strips separating opposing lanes of traffic on divided roadways but that this is not enough. He also acknowledged that there are better crossovers, allowing traffic to get on to the service roads, the subsidiary roads that run parallel to the highways, giving access to houses and businesses.

 

However, he said this was where it became dangerous for bike riders, because the bike lanes are inconsistent in that, for a short distance, they are located on the left-hand side of the road, but further on, they are on the right, requiring bike riders to cross over the busy travel lanes.

The family of Victorio Hilario-Guzman, 37, a delivery bike rider who was struck and killed by a hit and run driver on Sept. 23 in the Bronx, holds regular public awareness events at the site of the crash where Hilario-Guzman was killed in order to push for justice for him, and to raise awareness about bike safety, particularly for immigrant delivery workers. 
Image courtesy of Kevin Daloia

As reported previously by Norwood News, Bronx cyclists were given a boost on Friday, Nov. 20, when officials from the de Blasio administration announced that DOT completed a major transformation of the Edward L. Grant Highway in the Highbridge section of the Bronx, with major bicycle safety improvements to the corridor, including a combined 2.4 miles of dedicated red, center bus lanes, and new green protected bike lanes (PBL).

 

While elected officials and bike advocates were encouraged by this latest development, they urged the administration to forge ahead with additional bike lanes on the borough’s remaining highways since further bike lane expansion and improvements are still needed.

 

Transportation Alternatives issued the following statement to Streetsblog on Nov. 25. “This year is projected to have the most traffic deaths of any year during Mayor de Blasio’s time in office. However, rather than fight to save human lives, the mayor has slashed the budgets for life-saving programs like Vision Zero and the Green Wave Plan, and he delayed the rollout of the Dangerous Vehicle Abatement Program and the Streets Master Plan.”

 

The statement continued, “We know the New York City Department of Transportation is capable of delivering safe streets, but without support from the mayor, New York City will continue to prioritize the convenience of drivers over human life.” Norwood News reached out to the mayor’s office for comment, and did not receive an immediate response.

 

Elsewhere in other cities across the globe, as reported by The Wired, in Oslo, Norway, the capital city has brought bike deaths down to zero through the implementation of a program whereby inner city areas are largely pedestrianized. This has reduced bike deaths to zero, without impacting city trading.

A ghost bike is installed as a memorial to the bike victim who was killed in the fifth deadly bike crash in the Bronx in 2020 on the Willis Avenue Bridge.
Photo by Kevin Daloia
Meanwhile, in the Bronx, another deadly bike crash occurred on Bruckner Boulevard on Thursday, Nov. 5, which followed an earlier deadly crash in Harlem on Nov. 1. Streetsblog reported that Michael Basurto Larino, 22, was riding westbound on Bruckner Boulevard at around 1:45 p.m. on Nov. 5 when he “collided into the rear” of a truck which was heading southbound on Brown Place in the South Bronx.
The NYPD investigation into the Nov. 5 incident is ongoing. Streetsblog also wrote that it had uncovered evidence, through researching similar bike accidents where bikes collided into the rear of vehicles, that showed that it was not always the cyclist’s fault.  
Transportation Alternatives said both the November bike incidents involved immigrant, delivery men and both have or will be honored with additional Ghost Bike memorials.

 

Streetsblog also reported that according to the NYPD, bike injuries are up 40 percent this year in the Bronx, and total road deaths are up more than 65 percent.

 

Nov. 15 marked the world day of remembrance for road traffic victims. To mark the occasion, Families for Safe Streets and Transportation Alternatives hosted a rally at City Hall Park. 

 

On Wednesday, Nov. 18, Daloia and his colleagues installed another Ghost Bike memorial for Lirado, marking the eighth person to be killed on the streets of the Bronx in 2020. Once again, friends and family, and members of STREETMEMORIALS.ORG joined volunteers from Transportation Alternatives at the ceremony.

 

Transportation Alternatives said they want to help fight for justice for the many immigrant, non-English speaking, delivery men and women who, they say, have been “getting slaughtered on the streets of the Bronx, and across NYC,” and many of whom are killed by hit and run drivers.

 

“Traffic and vehicular traffic must be controlled,” said Daloia. “Four of these deadly crashes were in the 40th precinct in Bronx Community Board 1, in Mott Haven.” All involved Spanish-speaking, delivery men. “Hit and runs cannot be acceptable,” he said.

 

Anyone who has information regarding any hit and run incident can contact police on 1-800-577-TIPS. All calls are confidential.

Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.

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