Distracted driving leads to preventable deaths, yet UWS City Council Member Helen Rosenthal chose to be on video for a Zoom call while driving around the UWS. When she reached the campaign event for mayoral hopeful Maya Wiley, which was only 5 blocks from her home, she told Politico’s health care reporter Amanda Eisenberg, that she should have walked.
“This is what privilege looks like. While the rest of us plebes walk or take the subway, our staunch progressive Helen drives her car to appointments. But if you need her help, call her office,” said Ellen Singer Shell, a resident of the Upper West Side.
Here’s the video (via NY Post):
According to Streetsblog, the license plate of the car Rosenthal was driving has had 62 tickets issued to it since 2013. These infractions include speeding, running a red light, and speeding in school zones. We placed a call to the 33rd police precinct to see if this new incident would be added to the politicians record.
“We cannot issue a summons for a driving infraction we did not see happen, even if it’s on video,” a representative from the 33rd precinct said. When pressed, they said they would follow up on video evidence if a felony was committed, but not for a violation of this type.
Lisa Orman of StreetopiaUWS told Streesblog, that “naming streets for our dead children and seniors, people who were killed precisely because of distracted driving, is not what makes a leader. True leaders understand their responsibility to keeping everyone safe and leading by example.”
On the Upper West Side, where only about 20 percent of residents own cars, it seems like Rosenthal’s Zoom incident has really hit a nerve.
It’s really disgraceful. Happy to lecture and preach to us on all manner of subjects from on high, but racks up 62 tickets over eight years. Do as I say not as I do. Wow, how NYC has chosen to be governed. What a crew.
It’s hit a nerve not only because of her hypocrisy, but because of the YEARS-long arrogance, inaccessibility and condescension she continues to display to her district/neighbors. Time for a change, once & for all, UWS.
This is both criminal and demonstrates horrible judgment. Drivers need to watch where they are going, especially in NYC (not a computer or phone). Just awful and appalling behavior.
This, from a representative who touts bicycle paths, discourages cars, and whose district has lost scores of parking spaces so that bike rental racks can be installed.
Seems strange that the police can’t enforce a citation if it’s reasonably clear she was driving recklessly. This video provides reasonable and irrefutable proof. Video is used as evidence in every other crime. She absolutely could’ve killed someone, and frankly doesn’t seem concerned at all driving this way.
I moved to NYC purposefully so I could give away my car.
Owning a car isn’t “priviledge” it’s a sucker-bet. The only winner is the dealership. Cars are a scourge and a money pit.
I’ve needed a car ONCE in the 6 years I’ve been here. No parking fees, no tickets, no repair bills, no gas charges, no insurance. I figure I have $1300-1500 more in my pocket EVERY MONTH.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Helen Rosenthal is a hypocrite. She is aloof, condescending and out of touch with her UWS constituents. I have personally seen her drive while on cell (in her hand) in the neighborhood many years ago while she was trying to say she cared about street pedestrian safety and zero vision.
She is a hypocrite when it comes to many other things, like actually just getting paid doing nothing for the UWS for at least a few years except for going to rallies. Her recent pamphlet (out after a long long time) is a joke and further proves that she has been doing nothing. It only listed services on the UWS and nothing about the issues and how she is addressing them. Thanks for the pamphlet Helen, it must have taken a lot of effort to put it together. She goes to rallies for/with Maya Wiley and Sara Lind as she was doing here. I guess hoping she can be hired by them if elected. A hypocrite is someone who goes to rallies about the homeless but does nothing to address the homelessness issue in the area she was elected to serve. Or drives recklessly for years and says she is angry about driver’s negligence. I.e. one who just makes noise about something but does something completely different themselves and believes that they are exempt from the rule of conduct/service.
We need to do better in electing our local politicians.
#NoMoreRosenthal
She’s horrible for the UWS. Gale Brewer too
#TeamMariaDanzilo. Let’s go UWS! Vote for change. Maria will make it happen
Who is surprised by this? HELEN has always felt she was accountable to no one.
Last week my husband stopped in to ask her about mail delivery (we have notorious problems in our apartment building). She practically slammed the door in his face, yelling: “That’s a federal issue. Take it up with them.” That may be the case, but who speaks to someone like that?!
I’ve only lived here for 2 years but am continually nonplussed that Rosenthal holds any public office. She’s gotta go, neighbors.
Helen Rosenthal is an absolute disgrace in EVERY possible way. Just one example is when I asked her about the rising crime in our neighborhood she told me it was just a perception on my part.
We have the WORST representation from the mayor to the City Council members. Our fault. They were all voted in. I will never understand it.
Another example of a NYC politician with no common sense. She panders to more of the upper west siders that have nothing in common with the majority.
I am stunned that the people in the city vote the way they do. Is it possible that common sense skipped a generation or two.
“Lisa Orman of StreetopiaUWS told Streesblog…”
This is really one entity, a conglomerate called ‘OpenPlans’ and Orman is essentially the COO under the owner, who spends millions on his dream of ridding NYC of cars.
The owner, Mark Gorton, has paid over $200 million in fines and settlements for sleazy business operations in the streaming “service” field (copyright infringements) and in high frequency trading (market manipulation) since 2010.
If trump is a sleazy businessman as evidenced by what, 30 million in these kinds of payments, then what is Gorton? Oh, by the way, yes trump is sleazy.
News sources covering the UWS should consider a story on how this group came to be, how it came to dominate Community Board 7, the amounts being spent on this astroturfing project, including on the kinds of donations that get it outsized influence on our local political scene.
And the least our local news sources can do is stop quoting them without proper attribution of discussion of how these stories and quotes get planted.
Toronto councillor seen on video driving during city’s budget vote
https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/it-s-just-inappropriate-toronto-councillor-seen-on-video-driving-during-city-s-budget-vote-1.5315636