are continuing to investigate an accident that in Upper Grandview last Sunday, officials told Patch Wednesday morning.
53-year old Pomona resident Janet Martinez was riding along the winding road at about 2 p.m. when she was struck by a sedan being driven by Denise Patawaran, a 25-year-old from nearby Sparkill.
Patawaran has had no charges filed against her, officials said.
Now, police are seeking witnesses and working to determine what caused the accident—and who may have been at fault.
Police said Martinez was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. She was not carrying identification, however, and police struggled to contact her kin.
Martinez was transported to and died shortly after the accident.
According to Martinez's obituary, she is survived by her daughters Kristina Curti and Jesica Laregui, who live with their families in Valley Cottage and Nyack, respectively. She also has a grandson, Preston Curti.
Martinez worked for over three decades in the Supreme Court's Appellate Division in Manhattan, and "loved the outdoors," the obituary reads.
Martinez's funeral will be held Friday, June 15 at 11 a.m. at Gracepoint Gospel Fellowship (384 New Hempstead Rd., New City.)
Visiting hours are being held Thursday at Gracepoint from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Police have talked with bicyclists who were in the area when the incident occurred; they noted that, to the best of their knowledge, Martinez was not riding with a group.
Neighboring authorities, like and , have noted bicyclists and motorists at odds is nothing new; read Patch's investigation of the issue from last summer .
In Patch's comment stream, a number of readers and residents weighed in on the dangers of biking along 9W.
"9W should ban cycling," one user wrote. "There are alternatives such as River Road, Route 340 and Closter Dock Road. If the bike route were altered and there better signage indicating cyclists, maybe we could make it safer, for both cyclists and motorists."
I was driving between Rockland Road and the entrance to the Palisades Parkway. During that stretch, three different bicyclists jumped out of the bike lane, into the car lane, in order to pass a slower cyclist. Not one of them looked to see if the coast was clear before proceeding. Not one of them used a hand signal nor any other type of indication that they were about to jump out in front of my car. Each time I narrowly missed hitting the cyclist by swerving into the oncoming lane, putting myself and my 8 yo daughter in danger. The last occurrence happened on the big incline before Lamont, nearly causing me to have a head-on collision since the road is narrower. (continued)
A couple of proposals: Cyclists, for their own safety, should be banned from 9W between Ash St & North Broadway. This tragic accident is so sad, for both families, but it was an accident waiting to happen. There is simply not enough room for both motorists and cyclists to travel safely. If cyclists are to utilize county roads for their rides, such as 9W and 340, they should be licensed. A little education on road safety could prevent further accidents. I have never witnessed a cyclist drive defensively. Any bike club that sponsors an organized ride through our neighborhoods should be responsible for notifying the local community. Most traffic violations I've witnessed are caused by groups of cyclists, not individuals. It isn't difficult to post notices on such places like the Patch or Facebook.
I want to make a "glass houses" statement here though; How many of you drivers absolutely OBEY a 30MPH speed limit? Or 55MPH (50 in spots) on the PIP? 15MPH in a schol zone? I don't mean slow down nearing the limit. I mean drive like 30s the LIMIT, 32 is too much? In the NY driving culture, drivers seem to have an agreement how much is okay to break the law, but we want to hold those stop sign running scoff-law cyclist to the letter of the law. We don't have all the information, but it appears that the cause of this tragic accident was driver distraction. It wasn't because she ran a stop sign, or because the driver had nowhere to swerve, or enough time to stop. It seems to be because the driver did not even notice she was there. Here I hear a push to get bikes off "main" roads. I've LIVED off a main road. Not everyone lives on a culdesac. Even if you get the bikes off these main roads, us people who live on these roads want to walk their dogs and check their mail. Our kids still need to wait for the school bus. So before you talk about "the erratic and lawless behavior of cyclist" look at yourselves in your mirror (but please, not while you are driving).
Jack D.