Motorcyclist Killed After FDR Drive Crash on Upper East Side
A 48-year-old motorcycle driver was killed late June 1 on FDR Drive, where police told reporters he was thrown to the pavement and then hit by a 53-year-old driver in a Cadillac Escalade.
What We Know
Just before midnight on June 1, a 48-year-old man driving a 2007 Harley-Davidson motorcycle was killed on FDR Drive on the Upper East Side. The city crash record lists the motorcycle and a 2025 Cadillac SUV traveling north, with the motorcycle driver recorded as the person killed. Police accounts published by local outlets said the rider failed to navigate the roadway or a curve, hit the center curbline or divider, and was thrown to the pavement before a 53-year-old man driving a black Cadillac Escalade hit him. Reports place the crash near East 72nd Street or at East 74th Street. The Cadillac driver remained at the scene, and police said there were no immediate arrests while the Collision Investigation Squad continued its investigation.
A late-night ride ended after a fall on the FDR
The city crash record places the fatal crash on FDR Drive just before midnight on June 1 and records the person killed as a 48-year-old male motorcycle driver.
Police accounts reported by local outlets said the man was riding north or uptown when he failed to navigate the roadway or a curve, hit the center curbline or a divider, and was thrown from the motorcycle. Those reports said a 53-year-old man driving a Cadillac Escalade northbound then hit the fallen rider, who died at the scene.
The reported cross street varied, but all accounts placed the crash on the Upper East Side
The official record lists the crash on FDR Drive in Manhattan. Published police accounts placed it on the Upper East Side, but described the cross street differently: the Daily News and Hoodline said near East 72nd Street, while Patch and East Side Feed said at East 74th Street.
East Side Feed reported that officers responded within the 19th Precinct, the NYPD precinct covering the Upper East Side.
The riders and drivers identified in the records
The motorcycle driver
The official person record identifies the person killed as a 48-year-old male driver and sole occupant of the motorcycle. Press reports said authorities were withholding his identity pending family notification.
The Cadillac driver
The official vehicle record lists one male driver in a northbound 2025 Cadillac SUV. News reports described him as a 53-year-old man driving a black Cadillac Escalade who remained at the scene.
Police said the investigation remained open
The Cadillac driver remained at the scene, according to police accounts reported by multiple outlets. Those reports said there were no immediate arrests or charges and that the NYPD Collision Investigation Squad was continuing its investigation.