A pedestrian suffered critical injuries Tuesday night after being struck by a car while walking in the eastbound lanes of Sunrise Highway in West Babylon, between Exit 37 and Exit 38. The crash happened around 8:30 p.m. and involved a 2014 Kia Optima driven by a 50-year-old East Islip woman. Suffolk County Police say the driver was not injured, while the pedestrian was rushed to a hospital with life-threatening injuries.
According to Greater Long Island, the pedestrian was transported to Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip. The hospital serves as the only American College of Surgeons-verified Level I Adult Trauma Center on the South Shore of Long Island, according to Catholic Health, meaning it is equipped to deliver specialized surgical and critical care for the kind of severe injuries a high-speed impact can cause. The pedestrian's identity has not been released, pending notification of next of kin, the outlet reported.
The driver has been identified by Suffolk County Police as Rosemarie Grispino, 50, of East Islip. Her Kia Optima was impounded for a routine safety check, a standard step whenever a crash results in serious injury. Under Suffolk County Police Department procedure, impounded vehicles undergo mechanical evaluations, including checks of braking and steering systems, according to Daily Voice, so detectives can determine whether any vehicle defect played a role in the collision.
Why Was Someone Walking on a 55 MPH Expressway?
The stretch of Sunrise Highway where the crash occurred operates as a divided, limited-access expressway with a posted speed limit of 55 mph, according to New York State Roads. Under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1229-a, pedestrians are barred from occupying any space within the limits of state expressway highways, including entrance and exit ramps, except during emergencies or while performing official public duties, per Justia Law. It remains unclear why the pedestrian was in the active eastbound lanes at that hour, and whether alcohol or distraction contributed to the crash has not been disclosed.
Suffolk County Police say the investigation is ongoing. The department's First Squad is asking anyone with information to call 631-854-8152.
A Corridor With a Troubled History
The crash adds to a long-documented pattern of danger along this corridor. A five-year study of Long Island crash records from 2016 through 2020 identified Route 27, which includes Sunrise Highway, as one of Long Island's two deadliest roads, with 61 traffic fatalities, 41 percent of them pedestrians or bicyclists, per a Newsday analysis reported by WSHU. Suffolk County itself led all New York counties in total traffic fatalities in 2022, recording 164 deaths, with local law enforcement noting a growing share of those crashes involve pedestrians and bicyclists, according to AEE Law.
More recent state data shows the danger has not eased. Pedestrian injuries and fatalities across Nassau and Suffolk counties rose 10 percent from 2022 to 2024, with 58 pedestrians killed in traffic crashes on Long Island in 2024, according to the New York State Governor's Traffic Safety Committee, cited by the NYS DMV. In response, Suffolk County Police have run periodic enforcement pushes, including the Suffolk Intensified Traffic Enforcement Team, which sends extra patrols to high-speed corridors like Sunrise Highway during evening hours, when reduced daylight raises pedestrian crash risk.
Arterial Roads, Outsized Risk
Transportation researchers have long flagged roads like Sunrise Highway as disproportionately dangerous for anyone on foot. Arterial roadways make up roughly 15 percent of lane miles in the downstate New York metro area but account for 52 percent of all pedestrian fatalities, according to a 2016 analysis from the Tri-State Transportation Campaign. Experts point to the design tension at the heart of the problem: these roads are engineered to move vehicles quickly, often without the crosswalks or lighting pedestrians need to cross safely.
The West Babylon area has seen other recent crashes nearby. Less than a week before Tuesday's collision, Hoodline reported on a second Route 109 crash at Herzel Boulevard, near Sunrise Highway's Exit 37, which prompted residents to demand traffic signal upgrades at that intersection. Suffolk County Police have not said whether Tuesday's crash will factor into any broader review of the corridor, and no additional details about the pedestrian's condition have been released.
