A cyclist was run over and killed on an industrial street in Williamsburg on Tuesday — the second time in one month that a bike rider has died in a crash.
Erica Abbott, 29, was cruising on Bushwick Avenue at 6:54 pm when she fell off her bicycle near Powers Street after riding over a piece of construction debris.
She tumbled from the bike — and was promptly run over by a Mercedes sedan that had been following closely behind.
Police responded within minutes and found Abbott unconscious on the street. Emergency medical officals took Abbott to Woodhull Hospital where she died from severe injuries to her head and torso.
Officers detained the driver, but determined that no crime had been committed. An investigation is ongoing, however.
The fatality is the city’s third cyclist death in the past month — and the second in Williamsburg over the same period.
On Aug. 1, a delivery truck clipped a 29-year-old cyclist who was trying to turn onto Metropolitan Avenue from Gardner Street.
The driver did not notice that he had struck the cyclist and left the scene. Police ruled the collision an accident and said the cyclist was at fault.
In the wake of the two deaths, locals are calling for more bike lanes and traffic-calming measures for the area.
“Cyclists and motorists share our city roads and need to look out for one another,” said state Sen. Martin Dilan (D–Williamsburg). “But municipal agencies must also design measures and bike lanes free of obstruction and abuse.”
And Times Up’s Barbara Ross said that the city must educate motorists about slowing down on neighborhood streets.
“Cars should not be going that fast to the point that they can’t break in time for cyclists passing by,” said Ross. “We’re not living on a freeway.”
