‘Hot Impunity Summer’ Edition – Streetsblog New York City

He is sorry … that some of his political enemies stoop to this.

After The Post denounced Bay Ridge board member Justin Brannan for getting 16 speeding tickets in the school zone – including six infractions in the past five months – Brannan took to a Facebook group to explain why he had been “singled out” for consideration. His apology surfaced with many clearings of the throat and warnings for his behavior.

“Did one of my many opponents crash this story?” Of course they did! Brannan wrote. “But it doesn’t matter.” So why mention it?

Uh, I only blamed myself. This screenshot is taken out of context – it was part of a long FB thread where people were asking / wondering why I had been singled out etc. And, like I said, it doesn’t matter where it comes from. It belongs to me. It’s on me. Why I was chosen doesn’t matter.

– Justin Brannan (@JustinBrannan) July 19, 2021

Safe-streets defenders and journalists noted that his statement raised even more questions: Why was a politician driving more “waayyyy” during the pandemic, when he could have set an example and taken public transport, like the rest of the essential workers? Why did he need a story in the Post to remind him to “practice what we preach”? Wasn’t the second speeding ticket enough? And the 15th? The Post also caught Brannan’s Ford SUV illegally parked in front of where Jumaane Williams was getting married, a sign issued by the city on the dashboard. How often does he use his parking sign? And for what purpose?

Brannan didn’t respond to Streetsblog messages or texts – nor did he pick up the phone when we called him with follow-up questions. Specifically: will he relinquish his city-owned parking plate? Will he redouble his efforts to make Fourth Avenue safer? Our inbox is waiting for you, Board member.

Are you going to give up your city-issued parking plate?

– Streetsblog New York (@StreetsblogNYC) July 19, 2021

• The MTA will not increase fares in 2021, according to Larry Schwartz, MTA board member and confidant of Governor Cuomo. “Now is not the time to increase rates,” Schwartz told reporters after the agency’s committee meeting on Monday afternoon. But the man who was repeatedly bitten by Cuomo’s dog in the governor’s mansion, much to the governor’s delight, said the delayed 4% rate hike could take place next year, and has hinted that the MTA would ask New York City to contribute more money. at the agency. Gothamist, the Daily News and the Post all covered.
• The city’s Jose Martinez noted that the MTA has eliminated remote commenting with the return of in-person meetings, making it much more difficult for New Yorkers with disabilities or other accessibility issues to travel to the city. Lower Manhattan and express yourself.
• Staten Island Advance op / ed writer Tom Wrobleski spends a column complaining about the threat of e-bikes without once mentioning that the number of road fatalities has doubled this year due to reckless motorists . Read this advanced report instead.
• Bloomberg’s City Lab reports that about 30% of traffic accidents go unreported in Washington, DC, with most unreported accidents occurring in black communities.
• Some of the “25 Ways to Make the Post-Pandemic City More Liveable, Prosperous, and Fair” of Curbed have made us spit our coffee (lol Jeff Zucker), but there are a few we can adopt, namely ban private cars in Manhattan and take the metro free four days a week.
• Bill de Blasio’s “Wet and Hot Validating Summer” is The New Yorker’s Talk of the Town. Lesson: If you put on a cute shirt and a wacky hat, some reporters will forget that you are conducting a forensic investigation into the death of Eric Garner, moving homeless New Yorkers from hotels to shelters, failing to convince crucial segments of the population to be vaccinated, and does nothing concrete against the growing epidemic of heat and death on the streets of our cities.