Bronx Girl, 16, Killed By Delivery Truck While Crossing Street: NYPD

NEW YORK CITY — A 16-year-old Bronx girl was struck and killed by a delivery truck while she walked to school, police and advocates said.

Alissa Kolenovic died Wednesday morning after a pedestrian crash at the intersection of Neill and Paulding avenues in Morris Park, authorities said.

The truck driver who struck her — Joseph Zillitto, 46, of The Bronx — faces two moving violations after police said he failed to yield and use proper care.

Kolenovic is the 73rd person to be killed by a traffic crash this year in the city, records compiled by Transportation Alternatives.

“Alissa Kolenovic was killed in a predictable and preventable traffic crash, and tragically, she is not alone," said Danny Harris, the executive director of Transportation Alternatives. "Nine children aged 18 and younger have been killed in traffic crashes already this year — nine children who won’t get a chance to go to college, might not have finished high school, and will not get to grow up — a fatality rate that is 125 percent higher than it was this time last year."

Police said Zillitto had stopped at the intersection after driving south down Paulding Avenue. He tried to make a left turn onto Neill Avenue, but he struck Kolenovic as she walked across the street, authorities said.

Zillitto stayed at the crash as police arrived shortly after 8:22 a.m., officials said. Medics rushed Kolenovic to Jacobi Hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead, authorities said.

The truck involved in the crash had more than 125 violations since August 2018, including 29 this year, as well as $10,000 in fines, according to records published by Transportation Alternatives.

New York City is on pace to have one of its deadliest years on the streets, data shows. Bronx traffic fatalities in 2022 are 55 percent higher than last year, according to data compiled by Transportation Alternatives.

Advocates have pushed Mayor Eric Adams to expand Vision Zero programs such as street redesigns and lower speed limits to help curb the surge in deaths. Adams, for his part, recently unveiled an eye-catching $4 million anti-speeding campaign which features images and videos of pedestrians getting hit by cars with the message "Speeding Ruins Lives, Slow Down."

"This is a real crisis," he said.

But Adams' administration also missed an April 30 deadline to share results of crash sites and proposed street design changes, Gothamist reported.