A cyclist is fighting for their life in a hospital after being struck by an SUV on City Island in the Bronx, in a crash that investigators are still working to piece together. The 57-year-old rider was rushed away with life-threatening injuries, while the driver of the vehicle remained at the scene and, as of Friday evening, no arrests had been made.
Police say the cyclist was hit by a Honda SUV just after 9:15 on Friday morning as a 39-year-old woman was driving onto City Island. The force of the collision was severe enough to throw the cyclist's bicycle clear across to the opposite side of the road, a detail that underscored just how violent the impact had been along the narrow approach to the island.
The damage to the SUV told the story of how hard the crash was. The passenger side of the windshield was completely shattered and there was a large dent in the hood, so pronounced that one person who came upon the scene said they at first assumed a rock had been thrown at the glass. As investigators photographed the vehicle, the cyclist's shoe could still be seen resting on the car.
The 57-year-old on the bicycle was rushed to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, and police said they would continue to follow up on the rider's condition through the evening. The driver of the SUV stayed at the scene after the collision, and investigators said no arrests had been made as they worked to determine exactly what led up to the crash on the busy roadway.
The collision happened at a point where the designated bike lane on City Island comes to an end, leaving riders to either merge into vehicle traffic or continue along the sidewalk. That gap in the cycling route funnels drivers and cyclists together onto the same stretch of pavement, a layout that neighbors said has long left people traveling the road feeling exposed.
People who know the area described it as a place where speeding is common and where both drivers and cyclists need to pay closer attention to one another. Residents said everyone using the road shares responsibility for obeying the law, and several expressed hope for the injured rider's recovery as police pressed on with their investigation into the morning crash.