Second Fatal Crash On Warburton Avenue In Westchester Prompts Calls To Action
YONKERS, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A high-speed hazard has prompted calls for action, after a 21-year-old Westchester County man was killed in a crash on a road that many have called an accident waiting to happen.
As CBS 2's Lou Young reported Tuesday, if you enjoy driving, Warburton Avenue in Yonkers and Hastings-on-Hudson is one of those roads that beckons – a series of seemingly gentle downhill turns with a vista of the Hudson River to the left.
But down near the bottom of the hill, the shoulders of Warburton Avenue are littered with the remains of wrecked cars. The street is more dangerous than it looks.
"First you heard the screeching, and then ba-boom!" said Yonkers resident Jim Hogan.
Before dawn Tuesday, a single car lost control and careened off parked vehicles on both sides of the street. Carter Smith of Hastings died behind the wheel just inside Yonkers city limits.
"They come down the hill really fast," Hogan said. "And then they hit that corner, and by the time they're getting ahead, sometimes they're going 50, 60 miles an hour."
It was not the first time a fatal crash happened on Warburton Avenue. In fact, it was the second fatality on the road just this month – one driver lost his life careening over a guardrail on the Hastings side of the line on Dec. 1.
Locals said all sorts of drivers are lulled into complacency.
"You have school buses speeding, you have different types of cars speeding, and I believe that something has to be done about it," said Yonkers resident Javia Martinez. "Maybe speed bumps, a light -- something."
Residents said the section of Warburton Avenue in question is like an invitation to speeders, with nothing to suggest to a driver they to slow down along the way. There are no warning signs and no speed bumps. In fact, it is one full mile from that traffic light at Riverside High School to the bottom of the hill where the wreck happened Tuesday.
Police in Yonkers and Hastings have opened investigations into both of the fatal wrecks. CBS 2 was told they have already stepped up anti-speeding patrols, but may recommend additional measures later this year.
Although Warburton Avenue has been the scene of many crashes in years past, police said this month's accidents are actually the first fatalities in recent memories.
What do you think should be done to improve safety on Warburton Avenue? Leave your comments below...
