Every day there is a treacherous standoff between pedestrians and vehicles crossing several intersections on Mamaroneck Avenue.

In a span of three weeks, two people have been hit by vehicles, one which resulted in the death of a 44 year old Mamaroneck day laborer.

On Tuesday, August 3, a 22 year old woman was hit by a landscaping truck at Hoyt and Mamaroneck Avenues near the train station as she entered the crosswalk about 2pm. Several drivers of other vehicles came to the woman’s aid; she was conscious and alert before being taken to Jacobi Medical Center.

The driver was cited for failing to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk, says Lt. Mark Gatta, Village of Mamaroneck Police.

Just one block away on July 21, Noe Cortez Duran was killed by a hit and run driver as he crossed Mamaroneck Avenue around 11:30pm. An investigation by Village of Mamaroneck detectives led to the arrest of Jerry Barrios, a 23 year old resident of Elmsford. Barrios is charged with Leaving the Scene of a Motor Vehicle Accident Resulting in Death, a D Felony. He is released on $5000 cash bail.

The death of Cortez Duran has sparked an outcry by community residents about the dangers of the washed out and worn pedestrian crosswalks on the Village of Mamaroneck’s busiest avenue. where speeding vehicles whisk around a large curve in heart of the neighborhood called “The Flats.”

Village Trustee Nora Lucas says she plans to ask Village leaders to check if there are measures that can be taken to quickly improve safety in the area. Lucas says that the stretch of Mamaroneck Avenue between the train station and White Plains is controlled by Westchester County, which has plans for an extensive overhaul of the road, including repaving, painting and upgrades in crosswalk safety. She doesn’t think the community can wait for the County to act: “I don’t know whether the Village is actually allowed to paint the crossway,” she told us, “but the County might be able to give us permission to paint the crossings sooner. The County is doing a thoughtful project in an area that really needs it,” she said.

Meanwhile, the family of Noe Cortez Duran struggles to collect the $10,000 needed to repatriate his remains to Mexico, the home of his 80 year old mother. Donations can be made through Go Fund Me. Click here to donate.

In June, the Mamaroneck Village Board of Trustees approved plans to increase safety at several crosswalks including at Prospect and Fenimore Avenues, where curb extensions called bumpouts will be installed.