BikeJC Leads Jersey City’s World Day of Remembrance Ride Honoring Traffic Victims

BikeJC hosted its annual World Day of Remembrance ride in Jersey City to honor individuals who lost their lives to traffic violence. Participants cycled to several memorial sites across the city, where organizers paused to reflect on each person’s life and the circumstances of their death.

The tour began at the corner of Sixth Street and Jersey Avenue, where a white “ghost bike” memorial marks the site of six-year-old Eli Bender’s death. Bender was riding ahead of his family near their home on June 13 when a UPS truck struck him. He had attended Hamilton Park Montessori School. Following the incident, local residents held a vigil at nearby Hamilton Park and advocated for traffic-calming measures, including speed bumps and additional signage along Jersey Avenue.

Subsequent stops on the memorial route included Summit Avenue and Sip Avenue, where a 73-year-old man was killed earlier this year; Palisade Avenue and Paterson Plank Road, where 79-year-old Peggy McGeary died after being struck by a truck while riding her bike; and Marin Boulevard and Grand Street, where 34-year-old Natalia Caicedo was hit and killed by a drunk driver who fled the scene.

The ride also stopped at Terrace Avenue and Leonard Street to remember 16-year-old Alexander Rosas Flores and 15-year-old Elionel Jimenez, who were killed in a hit-and-run crash. The final location was 31 Neptune Avenue near Princeton Avenue, where a scooter rider died after losing control and crashing following contact with a speed hump.

The event served as a reminder of the ongoing dangers pedestrians and cyclists face on city streets and highlighted the need for continued advocacy for safer infrastructure.