Council Member Phil Wong has called for urgent safety improvements at a Glendale intersection after a 12-year-old boy was hospitalized with serious injuries after being struck by a vehicle at the intersection on Wednesday, Oct. 14.

The boy, whose identity is being withheld, was struck at around 5:45 p.m. at the intersection of 75th Avenue and 60th Lane and is "fortunate to be alive," according to Wong. The Department of Transportation said it is exploring potential safety upgrades at the location.

Wong said he has repeatedly raised concerns about the intersection, stating that drivers frequently speed toward it from 61st Street, where they often ignore stop signs. He noted that the incident is the second serious incident to take place near the intersection in 2026 after local resident Michael Benham suffered a broken leg and serious ligament damage in a hit-and-run on 75th Avenue between 61st Street and 60th Lane on March 17.

Wong has written a letter to Department of Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch calling for a comprehensive review of 75th Avenue in the wake of Wednesday's incident. He has also called on the NYPD and DOT to allocate an immediate increase in safety resources in the area.

"My heart goes out to this child and the family, who have done so much for our community," Wong said in a statement. "Just months ago, a father was seriously injured at this very same intersection, and now a 12-year-old is in the hospital with serious injuries. Residents have been raising concerns about dangerous driving here for years, and we need DOT and the NYPD to give this area the urgent attention it deserves before another family suffers."

Wong noted that the intersection is near PS 68Q, Evergreen Park and several daycare facilities, with children regularly crossing at the intersection.

Meghan Tadio, whose husband Michael was injured in the March 17 incident, said her husband was standing near his car on 75th Avenue when a truck sped through the intersection at 61st Street heading toward 60th Lane. Tadio said motorists frequently ignore stop signs at 61st Street and travel at speed down 75th Avenue in order to beat the lights at 60th Lane.

On this occasion, the truck struck another vehicle before swerving down the wrong side of the street, where it hit Benham, pinning him against his car. Benham suffered a broken leg in addition to tendon and ligament damage. The driver did not remain at the scene.

Tadio said there had been "at least four or five serious accidents" on or near the intersection since she moved onto 75th Avenue in 2022 but said her husband's incident was the first involving a pedestrian.

"People blow through the stop sign all the time," Tadio said. " They go through the stop sign and then they speed and they try and beat the light at the next street, and that's where we see a lot of the accidents happening."

She further noted that the 75th Avenue is an "extremely narrow" two-way street between 61st Street and 60th Lane, adding that children are "constantly" crossing at the intersection.

In the wake of her husband's accident, Tadio wrote to the DOT to request a traffic study at the intersection, calling for traffic signals and speed bumps to slow drivers down. However, she said the agency denied the request last month, allegedly informing her that there "weren't enough incidents or accidents" to justify a study at the intersection. She said she received a "generic form response" from the DOT, which she described as dismissive.

" You would hope that that pedestrians being struck by vehicles would spark them to (look at potential safety measures)," Tadio said. " Maybe the specific request that I put in for a traffic signal isn't feasible for that intersection, but you would hope that they would reach out and maybe start thinking about other ways that they could be helping mitigate the problem on this s tretch."

The DOT said in a statement that it is exploring safety upgrades at the location. "Every New Yorker should feel safe on our streets, and our thoughts are with these New Yorkers injured at this intersection and their families. We are exploring safety upgrades at this location," a DOT spokesperson said in a statement.

Agency officials said the DOT is in touch with the 104th Precinct and said the agency is reviewing Wong's letter. Prior to Wednesday's incident, there had been two pedestrian injuries at the location since 2021, officials said.