A six-vehicle crash involving a U.S. Postal Service truck injured three people and tied up traffic on the Major Deegan Expressway near Exit 7 early Saturday morning. The collision happened around 4:15 a.m., and one of the vehicles involved was left with extensive damage, including a crushed hood and rear end.
According to News12 | Bronx, the FDNY confirmed three people were injured in the crash, two seriously and one with minor injuries. All three were rushed to Lincoln Medical Center for treatment. The cause of the crash has not been determined.
Citizen app video captured from the scene showed significant traffic delays, with multiple lanes at a standstill as emergency crews worked to clear the wreckage, per the same News12 report. Exit 7 is a major arterial interchange that connects Interstate 87 directly to Interstate 95, also known as the Cross Bronx Expressway, and the Alexander Hamilton Bridge, according to AARoads.
Why the Deegan Backs Up So Fast
The Major Deegan Expressway is an arterial corridor in the Bronx. A sudden incident that forces multiple lanes to a stop can leave little room for drivers to maneuver, which helps explain how a 4:15 a.m. crash could still generate the kind of standstill captured on the Citizen video.
The corridor's crash history backs that up. The Major Deegan recorded 525 total vehicle crashes in 2023, the highest volume of any highway in the Bronx, per data compiled by The Orlow Firm. Exit 7 specifically has been the site of previous fatal collisions, including a June 2019 multi-vehicle wreck that killed a child, according to CBS New York.
Trauma Care and a Recent Pattern of Deegan Wrecks
All three victims from Saturday's crash were routed to Lincoln Medical Center, an NYC Health + Hospitals facility that operates one of the busiest Level 1 Trauma Centers in the Northeast, according to NYC Health + Hospitals. The facility's emergency department handles more than 177,000 patient visits annually, making it a natural landing point for the South Bronx's most serious trauma cases.
This is not the first multi-car pileup on this stretch of highway in recent months. The same expressway corridor was also the subject of a separate Kingsbridge report last month.
What USPS Involvement Means Legally
The presence of a USPS truck among the six vehicles adds a distinct legal wrinkle. Claims for injury or property damage stemming from crashes involving Postal Service vehicles fall under the Federal Tort Claims Act, according to National Trial Law. The process differs significantly from how claims are handled after a standard private auto collision.
Borough-wide numbers underscore how routine severe crashes have become on Bronx roads. New York City Department of Transportation data compiled this year shows the Bronx recorded 10,028 total motor vehicle crashes and 54 traffic fatalities in 2024, the third-highest fatality count among the city's five boroughs, according to AEE Law. Injury-producing crashes accounted for more than 4,400 of those incidents that year.
What triggered Saturday's chain-reaction collision, whether speed or a sudden lane change played a role, and the mechanical condition of the vehicles involved all remain unknown. No cause has been determined, and authorities have not released further details on the circumstances that led six vehicles, including the federal mail truck, to collide near Exit 7 in the pre-dawn hours.
