Nostrand Ave and Ave W. (Source: Google Maps)

I get it. New York City is a massive place with millions of people and drivers, so accidents are bound to happen. Still, it is upsetting to continually read about weekend car accidents that keep sending people to the hospital, sometimes killing them, especially when three accidents occur within a span of 90 minutes, sending four to hospitals across the city.

The New York Daily News reported on an accident that took place here in Sheepshead Bay this past Saturday night:

In the first incident, in Sheepshead Bay, a 43-year-old man was hit while crossing the intersection of Nostrand Ave. and Ave. W shortly after 10 p.m., authorities said. The man was unconscious when he was rushed by ambulance to Coney Island Hospital.

I write about these crashes all the time so perhaps my view on accidents, reckless driving and drunk driving is a bit jaded. I know that many accidents are just that and no one is really at fault. Still, is it possible for all motorists to take three seconds before they turn the keys of their automobiles and realize they are about to go hurtling through our city streets in 4,000-pound machines? Is it possible to just spend a moment contemplating your responsibility as a motorist to drive safely before you ruin your life and the lives of others when taking to the road?

I understand that there are a lot of pedestrians who jaywalk, especially on that stretch of Nostrand Avenue, and bicyclists who dart dangerously in front of traffic. But, still, those people aren’t behind the wheels of machines that could break every bone in your body and liquefy your internal organs. Maybe if we all took some time to realize the reality of operating a fast moving vehicle before we jet off to our jobs, next party, or mundane task, there might just be a few less accidents and a few more lives saved.

(UPDATE 1:20 p.m.):  The Daily News is reporting that the 43-year-old victim’s name was Jose Santiago and that he has died of his injuries at Coney Island Hospital. According to a poster on our Facebook page, the person who hit Santiago was allegedly talking on their phone at the time of the incident. Our condolences go out to the friends and family of Santiago.

Source: DOT

Last night, beginning at 10:00 p.m., the three lanes of the eastbound Belt Parkway between the Paerdegat Basin Bridge and Fresh Creek Basin Bridge (between exits 11 and 13), shifted right – leading commuters from the existing roadway to the newly completed roadway. That’ll allow a smoother transition onto the recently constructed eastbound bridge.

Have you been on the new road and bridge yet? Better? We hope so. ‘Cause it’s taking long enough, and the entire project – which includes replacing a total of seven Belt Parkway bridges – isn’t slated to be completed until 2017.

Attention drivers! There will be a number of street, bridge and highway closures all over the city this Sunday, as the Five Boro Bike Tour takes two-wheeling participants from edge to edge of New York City.

Most relevant to our area is that a portion of the Verrazano-Narrow Bridge will be closed for most of the day, as will the Gowanus Expressway and BQE.

The lower level of the Verrazano Bridge from Brooklyn to Staten Island will be closed from 12:01 a.m. to 6 p.m. The Brooklyn-bound lower level will also close at 12:01 a.m. Two lanes will reopen about 8 a.m. The upper level will be open in both directions.

From 7:45 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., the BQE/ Gowanus Expressway will be closed between BQE – West Entrance Columbia Street and the Verrazano Bridge. Beyond Columbia Street, the Bike Tour’s route is mainly on local streets, though their presence on the BQE also means traffic exiting the Hugh L. Carey (Brooklyn Battery) Tunnel in Brooklyn will be diverted to Hamilton Avenue from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

If you’re planning on driving around any other borough on Sunday, make sure you check with the DOT’s advisory.

Photo: TheRealSappy/Twitter

Police are investigating the cause of a Saturday evening accident, in which a car veered onto an Ocean Avenue sidewalk and struck three people.

The accident happened at approximately 4:30 between 5:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Ocean Avenue and Voorhies Avenue, and left three people injured.

One of the victims is in critical condition.

Police closed down Ocean Avenue from Avenue Z to Shore Parkway for approximately an hour, readers told Sheepshead Bites.

Authorities were still investigating what caused the driver to go off the road as of Sunday afternoon.

UPDATE (11:05 a.m.): NYPD sources have confirmed that the victims were three females, aged 27, 15 and 14. They were all taken to Lutheran Medical Center, with the two younger victims in stable condition. The 27-year-old is in critical condition.

Police also revealed that the car, a 2000 black Nissan, was traveling north on Ocean Avenue when the 66-year-old driver blew through a red light, mounted the curb and struck the victims.

There is no indication that the driver was under the influence of any kind of drug or alcohol, the police source noted, though he was issued a summons for failure to stop at a red light. It is currently being investigated as an accident, though additional charges may be leveled at the driver as the investigation unfolds.

Correction: (3/29/2013 at 10:41 a.m.): The 15-year-old victim, still in the hospital, left a comment below correcting the time stated above. It was between 5:00 and 5:30 p.m., she said, and not 4:30 p.m. as we previously reported.

Muni-Meters across the Sandy-damaged areas have been removed and replaced with traffic cones.

ONLY ON SHEEPSHEAD BITES: The Department of Transportation cut down and removed dozens of Muni-Meter machines this week. But instead of suspending parking regulations on affected streets, the agency is asking residents to walk several blocks to the nearest meter and pay.

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A high-powered spotlight used to illuminate Coney Island Hospital’s (2601 Ocean Parkway) construction work appears to be irking neighbors, and possibly blinding drivers.

Here’s what tipster Ed L. wrote to us:

There is a lack of concern for the neighbors and community as well as the safety of cars that come around the corner of Shore Parkway and East 6th St.  The construction crew aim the lights in the direction of Shore Pkwy and East 6th St blinding drivers as they turn the corner as well as blinding the community. I have asked for the lights to be aimed at the hospital not into the windows and streets of the community. They just don’t care.

Well, we doubt the folks there don’t care. The hospital shuttered during Sandy, and has only partially reopened as they make repairs. With thousands in the community depending on them as a 911 intake facility and provider of other critical health services, we know the team is  laboring to bring the community hospital back on line as soon as possible. But that’s no excuse for making a dangerous situation for drivers and neighbors.

Sheepshead Bites has contacted the hospital’s administration and is awaiting a response.

Source: NYC DOT

Alternate side parking regulations have been reinstated today, Monday, December 17, for Brooklyn Community Board 13, an area that includes Coney Island, Brighton Beach, and parts of Gravesend.

The Department of Transportation released the following message:

The New York City Department of Transportation, in conjunction with the Department of Sanitation, today announced that Alternate Side Parking (ASP) regulations are reinstated, effective Monday, Dec. 17, in Brooklyn Community Board 13 and Queens Community Board 14 (see maps). The reinstatement of ASP regulations will allow for necessary street maintenance as storm recovery efforts in these areas continue.

 Brooklyn Community Board 13 includes the neighborhoods of Coney Island, Brighton Beach, Gravesend, Homecrest and Seagate, and is delimited by Gravesend Bay on the west, 26th Avenue, 86th Street and Avenue Y on the north, Coney Island Avenue and Corbin Place on the east, and Lower New York Bay on the south.

Queens Community Board 14 includes the neighborhoods of Broad Channel, Breezy Point, Belle Harbor, Neponsit, Bayswater, Edgemere, Rockaway Park, Rockaway and Far Rockaway, and is delimited by Jamaica Bay to the north, the Nassau County line to the east and the Atlantic Ocean to the south.

ASP regulations in most areas of the city were reinstated as of Wednesday, Nov. 14 in order to allow for necessary street maintenance. With the reinstatement of regulations in Brooklyn Community Board 13 and Queens Community Board 14, all ASP regulations are in effect citywide.

The green areas mark where ASP remains suspended.

Alternate Side Parking regulations will be reinstated on Monday, December 10, for all Brooklyn communities impacted by Superstorm Sandy, except Community Board 13, which encompasses Brighton Beach, Coney Island and parts of Gravesend.

The Department of Transportation sent out the following message earlier today:

Alternate side parking regulations are reinstated effective Monday, December 10 in Brooklyn Community Boards 15 and 18 (see maps). The reinstatement of alternate side parking will allow for necessary street maintenance as storm recovery efforts in these areas continue.

Brooklyn Community Board 15 includes the neighborhoods of Sheepshead Bay, Manhattan Beach, Kings Bay, Gerritsen Beach, Kings Highway, East Gravesend, Madison, Homecrest and Plum Beach, and is delimited by Corbin Place, Coney Island Avenue, Avenue Y, 86th street, Avenue U and MacDonald Avenue, Avenue P and Kings Highway on the north, Nostrand Avenue and Marine Park on the east, as well as by the Atlantic Ocean on the south.

Brooklyn Community Board 18 includes the neighborhoods of Canarsie, Bergen Beach, Mill Basin, Flatlands, Marine Park, Georgetown and Mill Island and is delimited by Nostrand Avenue on the west, the Long Island Rail Road viaduct on the north, Van Sinderen Avenue and Louisiana Avenue on the east and Short Parkways on the south.

Previously announced suspensions remain in effect in Brooklyn Community Board 13 and Queens Community Board 14 until further notice to facilitate ongoing storm recovery efforts in areas with some of the most extensive damage. Alternate side parking regulations in other areas of the city were reinstated as of Wednesday, November 14, to allow for necessary street maintenance.

And now we know why this was happening.

The updated map showing where in Brooklyn and Queens Alternate Side Parking is suspended indefinitely.

Yesterday we reported that, though the city was reinstating Alternate Side Parking rules, it remains indefinitely suspended in communities hit hard by Hurricane Sandy.

The city limited exempted areas in Brooklyn to just Community Boards 15 and 13, which encompass Sheepshead Bay, Manhattan Beach, Gerritsen Beach, Brighton Beach, Coney Island, and other neighborhoods.

There must have been some uproar in other community boards whose damage may not have been extensive – or, at least, those that did not receive as much media coverage – because the city today expanded those indefinite suspensions to Community Board 6 – which includes Red Hook – and Community Board 18 – which includes Marine Park, Mill Basin and Canarsie, among others.

We know we have a number of readers in Marine Park, Mill Basin and Bergen Beach who will be happy to hear this.

Alternate Side Parking regulations are reinstated in most areas of the city as of this morning, but will remain suspended indefinitely in Brooklyn Community Boards 13 and 15 and Queens Community Board 14 in order to allow ongoing storm recovery efforts in areas with some of the most extensive damage. The reinstatement of these regulations in the remainder of the city will allow for necessary street maintenance and facilitate remaining recovery efforts.

The areas with ongoing suspensions include the neighborhoods of Brighton Beach, Coney Island, Gravesend, Seagate, Sheepshead Bay, Manhattan Beach, Gerritsen Beach, Broad Channel, Breezy Point and the Rockaways, as seen in the map above.