Hundreds of speed cams to hit streets
A careening yellow cab plowed through the window of a Hell’s Kitchen restaurant Thursday, sending lunch-hour customers scrambling for safety and leaving seven pedestrians injured, authorities said.
The taxi hurtled into the Westville restaurant on Ninth Ave. near W. 53rd St. about 12:30 p.m., authorities said, demolishing the front of the eatery. The cabbie later claimed he was hit from behind by a speeding vehicle.
“There was a taxi that jumped the sidewalk going about 20 mph and hit the restaurant,” said manager Peter Staley, who was in the basement when the crash occurred. “The taxi hit a few people by the window … and dragged them inside. Luckily, no one was injured as badly as they could have been.”
A video of the crash caught people walking along the sidewalk before the cab appears out of nowhere, jumping the curb and slamming into a young male as he tries to dodge the oncoming vehicle.
With the victim on the the hood, the taxi slams into empty tables on the sidewalk and crashes into the front glass.
Seven people suffered non-life threatening injuries, with five taken to nearby hospitals and two declining medical attention, said an FDNY spokesman. The victims ranged in age from 25 to 50 years old.
Cab driver M.D. Shulaiman said he was rearended by a car that plowed into him at a high rate of speed.
“It was out of control,” said the native of Bangladesh. “I don’t understand. What can I do? [The other driver was] coming strongly.”
Owner Jay Straus, 56, said the Hell’s Kitchen restaurant just opened four months ago.
“Welcome to the neighborhood, bro,” he said. “Every so often, something happens and you don’t know what to do in that moment. This is just another day in the life. Like, bring it on. Our business will be fine, our customers will be happy, everything will be alright.” A new batch of enforcement cameras are going to track and ticket-smack city drivers who speed.
State legislation that went into effect Thursday gives the city the green light to rapidly expand its network of speed cameras in school zones. The cameras were previously only permitted in 140 areas — now the city can install them in up to 750 zones.
The cameras automatically photograph cars traveling more than 10 mph above the speed limit, which is set at 25 mph on nearly all of the city’s streets. The owner of any car caught speeding by a camera will automatically be sent a $50 ticket.
Multiple cameras can be placed into each school zone. City officials activated several hundred of them on Thursday, including one near on E. Tremont Ave. in the Bronx, one of the boroughs most dangerous streets for pedestrians.
The new law also requires the cameras to be active from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays, rather than just when schools are in session.
“Speed cameras are an invaluable tool that help us save the lives of countless children every year,” said Mayor de Blasio. “We’re sending a message to all our motorists: drive at a safe speed or pay the price.”
Data has shown the cameras have helped make streets safer.
City data shows that traffic injuries fell by 14% where speed cameras were in place from 2014 to 2016. Speeding in areas with the cameras also dipped by more than 60% since 2014, according to public data.
“New York City’s speed safety camera program has proven to save,” said Ellen McDermott, interim executive director of street safety advocacy group Transportation Alternatives. “We have no doubt that this newly-expanded program will help us move even closer to reaching the goal of eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries on our streets.”