Cyclist Killed in First Avenue Box-Truck Crash
A driver in an Amazon electric box truck stayed at the scene after a June 16, 2023 crash at First Avenue and East 17th Street that the official record says killed a northbound bicyclist.
What We Know
On June 16, 2023, a young man riding north on First Avenue near East 17th Street died after a collision involving a northbound box-truck driver and his e-bike. The official record lists the crash at 12:39 p.m. and records one cyclist killed. The Daily News reported that the truck was an electric Amazon truck, that the driver stayed at the scene, and that the rider was pronounced dead at Bellevue Hospital. The same article describes the rider as 18, while the official record lists the bicyclist as 22; the article also contains conflicting language about whether he died at Bellevue or at the scene.
Northbound traffic met at East 17th Street
The official crash record places the crash at 12:39 p.m. on June 16, 2023, at First Avenue and East 17th Street in Manhattan. It records one person killed: a male bicyclist riding an e-bike north, with a northbound box-truck driver also recorded as going straight ahead.
The Daily News reported that the cyclist was riding north and making a left turn toward East 17th Street when the collision occurred with a northbound Amazon electric truck. The article also reported that witnesses said the rider had been on the east side of First Avenue, near the bus lane, rather than in the bike lane on the west side.
Records and press accounts disagree on the cyclist's age
The official record lists the person killed as a 22-year-old male bicyclist. The Daily News described him as an 18-year-old Stuyvesant Town resident and said his name was withheld pending family notification.
The official record lists an e-bike and a box truck
The city crash record identifies the larger vehicle as a 2023 Lion box truck with one male driver and lists the rider's vehicle as an e-bike. Both were recorded as traveling north before the crash. The Daily News reported that the truck was a fully electric Amazon truck.
The driver stayed as medics tried to save the rider
The Daily News reported that the driver stayed at the scene and was not facing criminal charges. A witness, Ash Alavi, described medics trying to resuscitate the rider and called the scene devastating.
The article says in one passage that the rider was pronounced dead at Bellevue Hospital and in another that he was dead at the scene.
The listed contributing factor points to bicyclist confusion
The official record lists "Pedestrian/Bicyclist/Other Pedestrian Error/Confusion" as the contributing factor associated with the e-bike. The reviewed article reported no criminal charges against the driver.
Where
1st Ave & East 17th St, Manhattan