[Nyabs] Blind Man Hit By Central Park Cyclist Sues NYC For Violating Americans with Disabilities Act

[Kathryn Carroll]

Hi everyone,

What do you think of the below? I believe this man competes with the
Achilles Track Club; Nihal can verify?

Kate
Blind Man Hit By Central Park Cyclist Sues NYC For Violating Americans with
Disabilities Act

 [image: 091312bernstein.jpg]
* Richard Bernstein and Central Park (Photo at right courtesy Kevin
Farley<http://www.flickr.com/photos/kevfarley/5198356723/>
)*

A blind man who was seriously injured by a cyclist in Central
Park<http://gothamist.com/2012/08/16/visually-impaired_runner_blindsided.php>has
filed a
federal lawsuit in
Michigan<http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20120913/METRO/209130454/1409/METRO/Bernstein-sues-NYC-after-being-hit-by-bike-Central-Park>(his
home state) accusing the city of violating the Americans with
Disabilities Act. It's been exactly one month since Richard Bernstein was
hit by the cyclist while jogging in the park, and he's still at Mt. Sinai
Hospital—he filed the lawsuit from his hospital bed, where he's recovering
from a broken hip and pelvis injury.

Bernstein, an attorney and disabled rights activist, was wearing a
fluorescent yellow shirt and bright blue sneakers, and carrying a
reflective white cane, when he was struck by cyclist Omar Shakir, who says
his gears jammed, causing him to lose control of his bike. (“I was coming
around a hairpin turn, my gear caught and I accidently hit a walker,” Shakir
recalled<http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/daily-news-exposes-central-park-bike-chaos-blind-marathon-runner-richard-bernstein-struck-speeding-cyclist-article-1.1137413>after
the accident. “I didn’t see him until the last minute.”) The
collision messed Bernstein up good. “I got destroyed,” he told the News
from the hospital.

The lawsuit accuses the city and the DOT of discriminating against the
disabled by failing to enforce rules requiring bicyclists stop at red
lights, stop signs and crosswalks at Central Park. Bernstein also thinks
the cyclist was speeding, something that the NYPD has also tried to control
in the park, with mixed
results<http://gothamist.com/2011/03/22/cops_ticketing_cyclists_in_central.php>.
When told that police have been handing educational
leaflets<http://gothamist.com/2012/09/11/heres_the_nypds_bicycle_safety_tips.php>to
pedestrians in the wake of his accident, Bernstein scoffed.

“If you know that people are not adhering to the rules and you don’t do
anything about it, the park is not accessible,” Bernstein told the Daily
News<http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/blind-marathoner-richard-bernstein-hit-cyclist-central-park-file-suit-new-york-article-1.1157949?localLinksEnabled=false>.
"I want them to present an action plan on how they are going to make the
park safer, with a timeline."

The NYPD has been cracking down on cyclists in Central Park, but officially
the department says<http://gothamist.com/2012/09/11/heres_the_nypds_bicycle_safety_tips.php>there
has been no enhanced enforcement of traffic laws, just the usual
level of enforcement. Cyclists aren't happy about it, and some say cops are
abandoning common
sense<http://gothamist.com/2012/09/10/central_park_cyclist_crackdown_cont.php>and
issuing costly tickets in pedaling through empty intersections.
Meanwhile, the Central Park Conservancy is considering turning over another
lane of car traffic to bicycles, similar to Prospect
Park<http://gothamist.com/2012/05/11/big_lane_changes_to_prospect_park_l.php>.
It's worth noting that during Prospect Park's car-free hours, the lights
are all green until a pedestrian pushes a button to cross the road, but the
lights in Central Park are too antiquated for that to happen.


-- 
Kathryn Carroll
St. John's University School of Law 2013
(Ph.) 347-455-1521
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