Fourteen-year-old student struck by car while riding bike near Bay Ridge school

A 14-year-old male bicyclist was struck by a vehicle in Bay Ridge.

According to police, on Monday, June 4 at around 2:58 p.m., the teen was riding his bike when he jutted out into traffic from the driveway near Bay Ridge Honda at Fourth Ave. and 88th St., near P.S. 264, and started riding northbound in front of oncoming traffic. A 44-year-old male driver, operating a 2012 Jeep, couldn’t stop in time and collided with the teen, leaving him pinned underneath the vehicle.

The bicyclist was rushed to Maimonides Medical Center and suffered fractures. Cops say he is expected to survive.

According to witnesses on the scene, the victim is an eighth grade student at P.S. 104, 9115 Fifth Avenue.

“The driver didn’t see the kid,” said one witness. “They then tried to pull him out.”

A classmate of the victim was also at the scene. “The light was green,” she said. “My teacher warned him three times to be careful or he could get hit one day.”

“It looked like he couldn’t move his leg,” the victim’s classmate added.

This is the third accident involving a bicyclist or pedestrian in recent weeks in the Bay Ridge area.

In April, a 10-year-old boy was struck by a driver at 84th St. and Fort Hamilton Parkway, leaving him with a fractured jaw.

Then in May, a 29-year-old man riding his bicycle was severely injured after colliding with a vehicle near Ridge Boulevard and 73rd St.

“I’m tired of saying enough is enough,” said Councilmember Justin Brannan, who has been vocal during the spate of accidents. “That’s why I’m co-sponsoring a bill designed to fight reckless driving. Drivers need to know they are not the only ones on the road—they share space with pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicles.”

Brannan also took part in a celebration to mark the installation of a speed bump near on 87th St. between Third Ave. and Ridge Boulevard, near P.S. 185.

“We’re trying to do everything we can to keep people safe,” he said during the ribbon cutting. “Speed bumps are a good way to do that, combined with people respecting each other, and doing it near a school is a no brainer.”

“This accident should serve as a reminder to everyone to both slow down and follow the rules of the road,” said John Quaglione, an aide to State Sen. Marty Golden, adding that the senator “asks the community to keep the teenager in their prayers for a full recovery,. Fortunately, this individual will survive but will have a long road to recovery.”  

“I guess what strikes me is that whenever an accident like this occurs, everybody is shocked and surprised as if it’s an odd occurrence,” said Bay Ridge Advocates Keeping Everyone Safe (B.R.A.K.E.S) member Maureen Landers, following one of the several recent accidents. “Then they ask, was it the driver, the bicyclist or whatever? The reality is no one should be surprised these incidents occur in our streets. Who’s to blame? We all are by our reckless driving, pedestrians on their phones, whatever it might be.”