A school bus driver was charged after a fatal crash in Ozone Park.
School bus driver Maria Marte was making a left turn when she struck and killed 73-year-old Maria Rodriguez at 107th Avenue and 86th Street in Queens on November 10, 2023; the official record logs the crash at 7:27 a.m., and reports differ on whether Rodriguez was in a marked crosswalk.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
Driver Maria Marte was making a left turn when she struck Rodriguez, and QNS reported she was charged with failure to yield to a pedestrian and failure to exercise due care. QNS and the official record place Rodriguez in a marked crosswalk; CBS New York reported investigators said she was not. QNS described the bus as a 2013 Starcraft EC3, while the official record lists a 2013 Ford truck/bus.
Accounts differ on the crosswalk and bus description
Police told QNS that Marte was turning left from 86th Street onto 107th Avenue when she struck Rodriguez. QNS reported that EMS pronounced Rodriguez dead at the scene; the official record counts one pedestrian killed in the crash.
QNS reported Rodriguez was in a marked crosswalk, and the official pedestrian record also codes her as crossing in a marked crosswalk. CBS New York reported investigators said she was not in the crosswalk.
QNS identified the bus as a 2013 Starcraft EC3; the official record lists a 2013 Ford truck/bus. CBS New York reported that four children were aboard and unharmed.
Rodriguez cared for and brought together her family
Rodriguez's family told CBS New York that she lived in the Bronx, was staying with her daughter, and had just dropped her grandchildren at school. QNS described the crash site as steps from Rodriguez's home on 107th Avenue.
Her grandson Joel Rodriguez said, “She would take every kid that she could to school. She raised them like it was her own. She basically raised me, too.” CBS reported that relatives were making funeral arrangements.
Police reports differ on the status of charges
QNS reported that Marte, 47, of East Elmhurst, remained at the scene, was taken into custody, and was charged with failure to yield to a pedestrian and failure to exercise due care. CBS New York reported that charges were pending and the driver remained in custody.
The official crash record lists failure to yield right-of-way as a contributing factor. QNS reported that the NYPD Highway District Collision Investigation Squad continued to investigate.
Where
107 AVENUE and 86 STREET