SUV Crashes Through Brick Wall In Cambridge
CAMBRIDGE (CBS) - A driver was cited by police after her SUV plowed through a brick wall in Cambridge late Wednesday morning.
It happened at the corner of Brattle Street and Fresh Pond Parkway around 11:30 a.m. Police said the driver, a 68-year-old woman from Chelsea, hit the gas pedal instead of the brake in her Toyota RAV4 just before the crash.
She wasn't hurt. Officers found her out of the SUV when they arrived.
"It's a pretty sad sight. I'm glad to hear that the woman that had the accident was not injured," said Cambridge resident Annette Lamond.
The SUV was towed away and the intersection was re-opened a short time later.
The wall will need to be repaired, as it stands in a historic district.
"Brattle Street is originally known as Tory Row for the Loyalist families that lived there before the American Revolution. All of the mansions, still exist," said Charles Sullivan, of the Cambridge Historical Commission.
"It's a serpentine wall, for sure, it was built in 1956," Sullivan said of the brick structure.
Some residents say hitting the wall is not uncommon. That's why they want the city to redesign the traffic patterns on Brattle Street.
Ann Kania said the fence outside her house was hit by a car a few years ago.
"There's a lot of crosswalk accidents, where someone is trying to cross, cars are speeding, they cross and they're tail-ended from someone behind them, and then, you know. It's really not a good situation here," Kania said.
Sullivan said the wall has been a "magnet" for cars. "When you look at it closely you can see brick patches where cars have been hitting it over and over again for many years," Sullivan said.
Police said the driver will receive a citation for negligent operation.
