Boulevard death is 49th in five years

An eight-month pregnant woman was killed Monday night when she was struck by a motorcycle while crossing the 7600 block of Roosevelt Boulevard, prompting local politicians to renew calls for increased safety measures on the notoriously deadly highway.

Giselle Moya, 28, was walking to her home on the 2200 block of Faunce Street when she was hit in the Boulevard’s northbound lane at 9:30 p.m. Moya was taken to Einstein Medical Center, where she and her baby died about an hour later.

Moya was using a pedestrian crosswalk that did not have a traffic light. According to PennDOT spokesman Gene Blaum, the crosswalk is currently one of five mid-block Boulevard locations targeted to receive a light in the next few months.

But City Controller Alan Butkovitz, who has pushed for boulevard improvements, said that doesn’t do any good now.

“That’s the old adage about what it takes to get a traffic light at any intersection is to have a traffic accident occur. It doesn’t do anyone any good to put in a light after a fatality,” he said, calling the Boulevard’s network of pedestrian crosswalks without lights “insane” given the speed at which cars travel on the highway.

The 25-year-old motorcyclist was taken to Aria-Torresdale Hospital with a broken leg and head injuries. Police are investigating the incident and have not determined if charges will be filed.