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Rampage spurs calls to ban cars from NY's Times Square

Posted at 5:41 PM, May 31, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-31 17:41:31-04

The vehicle rampage that killed a teenage tourist in New York's Times Square is spurring calls to further restrict cars from the so-called Crossroads of the World.

Broadway became a pedestrian-only zone at Times Square eight years ago.

Now some city officials and traffic experts say the car ban should be expanded to include the north-south artery Seventh Avenue.

Police say Richard Rojas was high on PCP when he drove a car through crowds of Times Square pedestrians on May 18, killing 18-year-old Alyssa Elsman, of Portage, Michigan, and injuring 22 others.

The 26-year-old Rojas was arrested on charges of murder and attempted murder and is being held pending his July 13 arraignment. An attorney for Rojas did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

The violence happened on Seventh Avenue north of 42nd Street, near where the glittering ball drops every New Year's Eve.