The Boulevard of Death has claimed another victim. The Daily News and New York 1 are reporting that a woman was killed crossing the Boulevard at 70th Street. Here’s a satellite photo of the intersection from Google Maps, and an aerial photo from Live Maps. Jeff Saltzman has pictures from the ground.
Back in 2001, Saltzman wrote:
Queens Boulevard is one of several similarly designed, multi-lane, multi-medianed thoroughfares strewn about the 5 boroughs of NYC. It was first widened in the 1920’s, when it was renamed from Hoffman Road and modeled on the Grand Concourse of the Bronx, which itself was an Americanized attempt to echo the great promenades and boulevards of France. Other cousins of this expansive roadway include Brooklyn’s Linden Blvd, Kings Highway, Eastern and Ocean Parkways, the Richmond Hill section of Woodhaven Boulevard, a short section of Little Neck Pkwy, the pre expressway Bruckner Boulevard in the Bronx and pre expressway Horace Harding Boulevard that ran from Queens Boulevard out to the Nassau County line.
Sadly, both the witness who called 911 after the crash and an obnoxious commenter on the Daily News site both think that there’s nothing that can be done to make the Boulevard safer. I hope they’re wrong. I don’t want to lose any friends or neighbors to it.
Thanks to Streetsblog for bringing the story to my attention.
One comment on “76 year-old woman killed at 70th Street and Queens Boulevard”
There is always an answer to a bad street plan, if you’ve ever been to Las Vegas, the city planners and road planners can up with pedestrian bridges. This works especially in an overly populated area or high traffic area.