By Tommy Hallissey

Pillars supporting the elevated subway tracks create an obstacle course for elderly pedestrians and obscure drivers' vision. 'There's no room for error,' says 50th precinct Capt. John D'Adamo.

Fiftieth Precinct police are stepping up patrols on a dangerous stretch of Broadway, where two women were run over in separate incidents in the last month.

Capt. John D'Adamo, the new commanding officer of the Five-0, said he ordered his highway safety teams to target the Broadway corridor. "We're going to put an end to [accidents] by education and enforcement - writing summonses," he said at the March 13 50th Precinct Community Council meeting.

Capt. D'Adamo said local police would ramp up enforcement of speeding, cell phone and seat belt tickets under the el. "Anything that contributes to accidents we're going to be targeting," Capt. D'Adamo said.

The two freak pedestrian fatalities in the last month occurred in similar fashion. Elderly women stepping out from behind pillars on Broadway were run over by cars which weren't excessively speeding. On March 9, a 75-year-old Yonkers woman was struck and killed by a 2005 Dodge Matrix on Broadway between West 238th and 239th streets. On Feb. 28, an 80-year-old woman died on Broadway after she was struck at the corner of Broadway and West 234th Street. Both drivers remained at the scene of the accident. No criminality was suspected in either instance.

The pattern, though, has police and advocacy groups taking a much-needed look at the street, which has always been problematic.

"It's a logistical nightmare," said Capt. D'Adamo. "There is no room for error."

Along the length of Broadway from the Harlem River to West 242nd Street, steel pillars supporting the elevated subway march down the middle of the road. Police say they contributed to the fatalities because both women stepped into the street from behind them.