Saintly Loser

Same here. I've seen parks department vehicles on the path, either scooters or those little utility vehicles they use. I've seen police scooters and once in a while a police horse.

Stacy

I ride the bike path several times a week and it's not unusual to see a stray cab or tourist wander onto the path between 42nd Street and the heliport. I'm pretty sure there used to be a flexible barrier around 17th Street. It wasn't enough to stop cars from entering the bikeway but they had to slow down to make it through the space.

Bklyn

Stacy is right. People get confused around 42nd Street. I mean, it's a HIGHWAY in NEW YORK CITY. Double-stress driving. I can't imagine that this guy didn't accidentally get on the bike path, thinking it was a feeder to the West Side Highway. And once you're on, well...you might as well head on even after you've realized it was a mistake. But. . . how fast would he have to be going not to see a cyclist DEAD AHEAD? And for the cyclist not to have seen the oncoming headlights? Unless he couldn't believe that the headlights were actually on the bike path. Or...the guy dimmed his lights cause he knew he was in the wrong lane.
At least he stayed and turned himself in.
Poor kid. The cyclist, I mean.

Stacy

Good but sad story in the NY Times
Drunken Driver Kills Rider On Bicycle Path, Police Say

Air

So sad that someone who worked for bike advocacy would get killed while biking on an effin' bike path. I think I knew him from Times-Up too.

threephi

Your previous post implied that some motorists intentionally used the MUP as an auto shortcut, and that's what I meant to say I'd never seen.

oboeguy

Hmmm, no helmet and possibly no lights -- maybe the drunk driver will get out of the charges. AFAIC, though, the killer should DIAF. Selfish POS b@stard.

It bugs me that the Times article linked begins with the presumption that the murderous idiot "mistakenly" drove onto the path. We don't know if that's the case, but it shows pretty clearly a bias in favor of, as usual, the driver.

mastershake916

The more that you look at the media the more bias it is.
Like how one news report said "but the killer's DNA was recovered from the scene."
That sets up a guilty verdict if they match the DNA, they don't know that it was the killer's DNA.

brokenrobot

I've 911'd idiots in sports cars taking the "shortcut" at rush hour on two separate occasions. SO yeah, it happens. Pretty damn rare, though... I hung out in that park through most of the day for months and months before I saw it happen for the first time. Unemployment rocked.

jyossarian

BTW, there may be a memorial ride for Eric later this week. Those of you who are local should try to make it. Check Times Up!'s website to see when the ride's going down. There's also a memorial ride in January for all the cyclist's killed this year.

Dahon.Steve

I was on that dangerous bike path and there was a Ghost bicycle chained to a fence indicating someone was killed there. I think that bicycle belonged to the doctor. Very sad.

I suspect another white Ghost bicycle will be left where this young man was killed.

Air

Times-Up actually donates those bikes and maintains them throughout the year.

buzzman

What a heartbreaking story this is. What a loss. We've lost a good one.

It's really hard not to go into a flaming rage over the stupidity of this driver. I mean this drunk ahole is so totally and 100% responsible for this senseless tragedy.

my deepest sympathy to anyone who knew this cyclist and his family.

Stacy

This guy was drunk so we can only guess what his intensions might have been but,. even if he got on the bike path by mistake, he bypassed so many streets between 17th and Clarkson Street (actually Houston Street) where he could have gotten off the bike path.

There's a sign posted at the location that police are looking for witnesses. We're probably fortunate there was a severe weather advisory in effect earlier in the day. Otherwise the bike path might have been more cyclists who could have been hurt or killed.

nycm'er

930 pm on a friday night? That driver must have passed more bikers. We have to look out for one another and call these people on the dangerous and selfish crap they pull. I have definitely seen people who were "confused" on driving on the bike path. I stop them and back them up. If a driver is that unsure of where to drive, they def. do not deserve to be driving. My thoughts to the family of the victim, and different thoughts to the cops and DAs who are lenient to drivers in cases like these, and yet chase bicyclists around for minor infractions.

superslomo

There is also a double yellow line down the middle of the path, both lanes together are probably the size of a regular traffic lane... and there are shrubs/walls on either side. This guy was in a single lane, straddling the double-yellow line with walls right next to him on both sides after driving through a pylon and didn't think to stop or turn back.

I feel terrible for the victim's family, and sad for the loss, and hope everyone stays safe and makes it home in one piece... and hope the driver pays an appropriate price for his callousness.

Scorer75

I don't even know what to say. We assume risks every day when we get on our bikes but on the path????

My sympathies to the family of Mr. Ng.

Flimflam

Wow that's tough :|
My condolences and thoughts go out to friends and family of Mr. Ng. Let's hope justice prevails for this man, innocently taken away from our world all for a selfish, stupid act.

If there's anyway I can get down to NYC in Jan, I will make that ride - anyone know if Toronto does a similar memorial?

RIP.

TRaffic Jammer

Ghost bikes and memorial rides are the norm here as well. Though I can't see a memorial ride for someone from another city being organized. I could be wrong though.

slvoid

Well at least they charged this guy with vehicular manslaughter. No word on the memorial ride for him specifically still.

TRaffic Jammer

I hope they throw the book at him hard..... it's one thing to waste someone on the road, but this is something entirely different. Are we to start looking for drunk drivers on subway platforms and lobbies of buildings?

oboeguy

We went on a Times Up! memorial ride within the last year. Those of you on the same ride surely remember the pouring rain that day. It was an incredibly emotional experience to see all these other cyclists saying to hell with the terrible weather, I'm coming out to memorialize my fallen fellow cyclists.

timmhaan

why didn't anyone from his company try to stop him from driving? i mean, here he was at a company party getting trashed with dozens or perhaps hundreds of other people. people he works with on a daily basis.

it's his own damn fault of course, but i think people need to look our for each other and make sure they don't get into their cars when they've been drinking all night.

Air

If I'm at a party I may not know who drives or who doesn't. Plus sometimes you 'feel' and act fine until you get outside or sit down. It was up to him to be responsible and he wasn't.

Stacy

Agreed. According to reports the driver lives in the East Village. Maybe three miles from Chelsea Piers? Someone should have just put him in a cab.