Meanwhile, the NYPD continues to crackdown on cyclists. When will they crackdown on cars and trucks?

I lived on Sumit between Columbia and Hicks for 16 years and as with others who have commented, I'm surprised this hasn't happened before. I used to walk my dog around the area, and when she was a puppy, her collar slipped off and she ran across the street, blessedly that day, a cab driver was not driving fast and my dog wasn't hurt but passers by still were appalled at the regular extremely face pace of the driving down Columbia. A traffic light MUST be placed on a couple of the cross streets from Carroll downward!

Indeed, Columbia and Summit is a busy, natural pedestrian thoroughfare as it's between the BQE foot bridge and Red Hook. I go through this intersection a couple of times a week and 3 out of 4 times will see cars on Columbia barely even slow down as they are racing to get to the BQE or wherever it is they are going. If not a full signal, the intersection needs proper cross walks and at least a blinking red. What a tragedy.

I have a complaint about this headline.

The Van did not kill this poor woman. The driver of the van killed this woman.

Important distinction.

Agree. If someone shot her, you wouldn't write, "Woman killed by gun."

When will we wake up to the constant danger of automibiles in urban areas. Each year, 45,000 - 50,000 Americans die , millions are injured, never mind the clouds of pollutants hanging over the city.

City should temporarily forget parking violations and assign all officers to moving to control speeding, red light running, and distraction (cell phone) violations.

We have been told in the past that the only way to get a light is to have a death. Perhaps at the next CB6 meeting this will come up.

If this person had been on a bike and knocked into this woman, the media would erupt in outrage. Do it in a car and kill someone and it's no big deal.

I don't see a problem with the headline. She obviously wasn't killed by a parked van with no driver in it. Seems semantical to argue otherwise.

Peter, can you please elaborate on why "words are important" explains the necessity of crowding a news headline with unnecessary information?

We won't get a light because this is a temporary 4 way stop as a result of the on-again off-again Van Brunt project. This intersection was never a problem until they turned around that block of Summit St. three years ago. In the meantime, they should make the stop signs more prominent. BTW, my kids are forbidden to cross here.

The news title is insulting, especially when i happen to know this wonderful woman!

How about instead of complaining about the poor journalism of Patch and how cars are evil, we just keep quiet, pay our respects for the victim and keep her family in our prayers.

That's right Anthony shut the F up

Brooklyn drivers are crazy and there's practically no enforcement of traffic laws.

I live in Red Hook and also walk this path a few times a week. In agreement with Libby Fine, I assume cars aren't going to stop either. It's necessary to practice defensive walking if you live in Brooklyn. Walking down Van Brunt Street, it's more common that cars turning onto Van Brunt will not stop than stop. I usually call out to the driver "Slow Down!" to which they will reply something like "shut up, mind your own business, don't tell me how to drive," etc.

Just another example of our corporate mindset in this country- the product that supports BIG Business trumps the rights of the citizen. In this case, since the NYPD refuses to enforce traffic laws, it favors the auto over the human. Car companies, the oil industry, insurance companies = important. Human life, not so much.

Everyone interested in attempting to improve our street safety should attend the next 76th precinct community council meeting, which meets the first Tuesday of each month.

The next meeting will take place on Tuesday, April 5 at 7:30 P.M., at the 76th Precinct Station House, located at 191 Union Street, between Hicks Street and Henry Street.

Everybody here seems to have a very short fuse, and very strong opinions. The truth of it is that not that many facts have been released by the police at least by the time this story was written. I happen to work right near this spot, and cross Columbia Street many times a day. Before I came to the area, I used to cross Court Street at Nelson many times a day. Court Street is one way, so I generally checked one way before crossing. Columbia is two way, and I had to get used to checking both ways. And I got used to it - because I value my life. My point is that upon crossing Columbia Street a pedestrian is responsible for checking both ways. A driver is responsible for obeying the speed limit and stopping at stop signs. As much as everyone here seems to want to jump to the conclusion that the pedestrian was killed by an irresponsible, speeding van, it is just as possible that the pedestrian walked into the path of a responsibly driven van, maybe talking on the cellphone, maybe oblivious to sound while listening to an walkman, or whatever. We don't know - and of course this is a horrible tragedy, but we don't yet know what happened.

We could put stoplights and surveillance cameras and police on every block - but I don't think it's beyond the pale to also consider personal responsibility as a deterrent to dangers.
George Fiala

So looking at that intersection:

The driver was heading east on Summit street in their van, when they came to the intersection of Summit & Columbia Street. There's a stop sign right there.

So they come to a complete stop, ease into the intersection, look both ways, and then turn left on Columbia, a street that's one lane in each direction.

And somehow, in the process, they hit & kill a 56-year old woman, who was walking from the other side of Columbia towards the van.

How did this driver *not* see this woman??

And how, when pulling into an intersection on a small street from a stop, did they get going fast enough to hit and kill her?!?!

By law, drivers are supposed to yield to pedestrians. Since there's no light here, she couldn't have been jaywalking. She was legally in the roadway.

How is the NYPD not charging this person with anything??

The tone of your comment indicates that you have it all figured out. But your reciting of the events is still just conjecture. It does seem that a responsible driver would not have hit a responsible pedestrian as described above. But the fact that the driver hasn't been charged with anything yet leads one to believe that there may be more to the story. Also remember this was not a hit and run - the driver stayed at the scene of the accident.

she could have not been paying attention and walked into the moving van as it was turning, been knocked to the ground, hit her head in such a way as to cause her death. Check out the Daily News today for a bit more information, including a photo of the driver.

It is incredibly sad that this poor woman could have avoided this fate. It's obvious that Columbia Street is very dangerous. The lack of stop lights, the narrowness and obscured visibility, the distracted drivers trying to avoid the BQE Trench (both directions), all present real dangers to pedestrians and "sane, safe and well mannered motorists." While accident statistics obscure the facts that since the ill-conceived, planned and corrupt renovations of Van Brunt began many more close calls have occurred. I've personally seen children barely escape speeding motorists at the intersection of Columbia and President where people try to cross to Mother Cabrini Park as the motorist try to make the light at Union and Columbia. Close calls are daily events. Sadly, the new park at the foot of Atlantic as well as the Gowanus Canal Cleanup all are causing more accidents. With Spring and kids playing outside more it is urgent something is done now.

Let's be clear here: The officers I know at the 76th are not empowered to make any traffic changes. They simply watch the bodies fall and then report the problem to the DOT and City. Furthermore, I don't pay taxes to have the local cops solve obvious safety issues better solved by simply better DOT planning. The City has made a serious error in their traffic planning and has put pedestrians at risk. This woman has lost her life. Someone should be held accountable for it and Columbia Street should be made safe for everyone.

I just finished working down there for a while and this does not surprise me. The stop signs over there are totally ineffective. I have found that many people roll through the stop signs and sometimes don't even slow down. Driving through these intersections can be difficult when other drivers are ignoring the traffic laws and as we can all see here it can be even more dangerous when walking through these intersections. Something definitely needs to be done and I think the police need to be a lot more aggressive about writing traffic tickets to drivers that ignore the driving laws.

Stop signs are too easily ignored. - A community focused approach that routes traffic intelligently with lights and signage would help.
- Columbia Street:
It should be reverted to a North bound only street.
- Hicks Street
There are too few lights, only three ways to cross over. (except Pedestrian Bridge)
- Kane Street (West bound)
- Union Street (East Bound)
- Sackett Street (West Bound)

Drivers know this and attempt to avoid traffic on BQE by going down Columbia (South/North) or speeding down Hicks (South/North).

When/If Van Brunt Street (from Hamilton - Battery Area to Degraw Streets) were intelligently opened up to two lanes and traffic encouraged to use that street instead of Hicks (north bound) and Columbia / Hicks (South Bound) this would help.

These local streets need to be appropriately managed by the community.

Well, until they finish construction on Van Brunt we'll have to be careful. We live in a mixed community - industry and residential. And the industry has been here longer than most of us. Hopefully when the BQE construction is all finished that will be an easier drive and there will be less of a motivation for drivers to avoid the traffic by coming into the neighborhood.

I fully agree that Columbia should be a one way street. Crossing Columbia can be tricky sometimes and nobody ever seems to want to slow down or stop for pedestrians.

Well, if vans don't kill pedestrians, then bicycles DEFINITELY don't kill people, so there's no reason to front that the current nypd shakedown against cyclists is about "safety," because it most definitely isn't.

why dont they put the whole neighborhood back the way it was open van brunt street

Its Patch, we can't actually critique its quality can we.. its a crappy AOL aggregated content site with trifles of news barely pieced together..

I live on this corner and can overlook that intersection from my living room window. The intersection has definitely become more dangerous since traffic was reversed on Summit St. I've called 311 several time to complain about the trucks getting stuck in the intersection which resulted in temporary changes to the parking rules. Sadly there have been a few people hit and vehicle accidents before this, though none fatal. I think visibility could be improved if there was a clearly marked cross walk and no parking right on the corners. What would be very helpful is if everyone could call 311 to complain about the intersection. The more calls the more likely we are to get attention from the city.

"bicycles DEFINITELY don't kill people" WRONG...cyclists often get killed for doing the wrong thing and MANY people are hit by cyclists. I do not advocate eliminating bicycle lanes but there has to be more street bike education. Many cyclists have less patience than motorists.
Columbia St. at Summit has a Dead zone if there is a truck parked or double parked on the inside left corner. I can't understand why NY Transit hasn't had DOT install a light on this corner for the B61. often there are road blocks caused by large trucks unable to make the turn. if the hook & ladder has to make that turn when there is a truck on Columbia we are all in trouble.

There is a hierarchy on the roads and at the top is the biggest, the truck. Might makes right. Then we have the smaller trucks, SUVs, cars, motorcycles, scooters, bicycles, skaters and then, lastly, peds. Too frequently, in a traffic incident, the larger vehicles get carte blanche treatment and are let go with no repercussions.

Too well I remember reading of a woman cyclist using the 3rd St. bike lane going to work. A parked truck, opened its door, struck her, she fell and was run over – to death – by another truck. The dooring vehicle’s driver was negligent – never looked into the bike lane. Killed someone. Instead of being charged with negligent homicide, the driver went home. Not even a ticket. The woman – to the morgue. Free body bag! It makes no sense in the face of justice.

How many times have I read – like here – “vehicle kills/injures” someone. It is the DRIVER! The van did not spring to life, like out of the Stephen King novel “ChristIne.” Hierarchy.

How often have I read “bicycle hits truck” – as if the cyclist suddenly kamikazed into another vehicle weighing 400, 500+ times more. Hierarchy.

... continued ...Tolstoy

I am surprised at some comments here (George) that WE, peds/cyclists, we lesser occupants of the hierarchy have to be careful. Sure we do – but the speeding, steel-encased, internal combustion vehicles are seldom cautioned to be careful. The woman killed was at fault??? The is a stop sign for vehicles and ped have the right of way. Back up please – don’t hit anyone else. It’s the hierarchy: the upper echelons have more freedoms than the lower, freedoms that include a drive home after negligently taking a life or causing serious physical injury.

There are negligent peds, cyclists, car and truck drivers. Which do more damage and cause more deaths? The hierarchy again. If you are walking/cycling, you are thought of as a lesser being or as someone too poor to afford a higher place in the hierarchy. I recently read of a cyclist, a female, who ran a red light – bad! But she was chased and cut off by an undercover NYPD car, wrestled to the ground and arrested. When, if ever, was a driver treated that way? Why are two, and maybe more, NYPD gold shields, undercover, chasing a cyclist anyway. Can we all spell H I E R A R C H Y?

I’d like to hear from a taxi driver – upper echelon but somehow lower in the hierarchy. Except when it’s raining.

I believe you are a little paranoid. There is no hierarchy - everyone who uses public space has to be responsible for themselves and also for others. Today as a pedestrian I was honked ferociously by a manic woman driving at least 45 miles an hour on Columbia Street as I ran across the street, and as a driver I had to make a sudden stop on Court Street as a pedestrian sauntered lazily into the street talking on their cellphone, oblivious to the fact that large vehicles had the actual right of way.

I wonder how many tickets are actually given for jaywalking. I would guess less than for driving through a red light. But that's just a guess. If there is any hierarchy I would say it is for who actually gets tickets.

I'll be interested to see the results of the investigation - whether anyone was indeed at fault or whether it was simply an unfortunate and tragic accident. In any case, I've been extra careful walking across Columbia since the incident.

a limo driver was getting a ticket at this intersection this morning. perhaps they are monitoring the cornor.

George, I am paranoid? What a sad comeback! There IS a hierarchy. Perhaps you are unaware of the disparate treatment dealt on the roads. Perhaps if you walked more or stretched your legs on bicycle, you’d see it. Perhaps if you read more …. Nonetheless, no reason to post ad hominem comments. I am not irrational and your post is poor netiquette. Wars start like that George.Was the victim at issue here paranoid? There is an inequitable dichotomy in the application of the vehicle and traffic laws. Investigate. One example is cyclists.

In any event, and much more importantly, RIP to the poor victim and her family/friends. That is so very sad.