A year of the Traffic Commission

underway, arising out of the Numbered Streets Study including speed humps on 4th street between Hilton and Franklin Avenue, Seventh Street crosswalks improvements and proposed restriping of First Street from Sunset Lane to Rockaway Avenue together with a crosswalk from First Street to community park. The first priority for traffic calming devices is school areas and roads with many school bus stops. Presently under consideration by DPW are (1) bump outs and chokers at Stratford School as shown on the satellite study; (2) speed humps or raised crosswalks at Homestead School; (3) raised crosswalks at Hemlock School (Bayberry Avenue) and Locust School (Boylston Street) and (4) Stewart School (Huntington and Clinton Road). Of course, traffic calming studies and their implementation is only a small part of the work the TC has been doing this past year.

II. Cut Through Traffic

Because of the village’s location, cut through traffic is a significant problem. Based on the Satellite Study, we are now looking at Tanners Pond Road, North Avenue, First Street, Meadow Street and Wetherill Road which are all impacted by cut through traffic and whether traffic calming devices are possible on any of those roads. Traffic calming devices include, but are not limited to, speed humps, chokers and pedestrian plazas. Essentially, traffic calming devices discourage cut through traffic, reduce vehicle speed and protect pedestrians. As has been shown on Fourth Street, a few speed humps can go a long way in reducing cut through traffic and substantially reducing average speeds of vehicles, thereby enhancing safety. The first priority with traffic calming devices remains school zones.

III. Pedestrian Crossings Initiatives

The Traffic Commission has established pedestrian safety as the top priority under the traffic safety umbrella. Some remedies to enhance pedestrian safety will be expensive (e.g., multiple bump outs or a choker on a Village street) but some will not. For example, the pedestrian crossing across Cathedral Avenue at Seventh Street.

This crossing is especially problematic because it involves crossing a T intersection when some traffic (westbound) has a green light. We are currently seeking a signal change from the County to include an “all red” segment. Meanwhile, we have added a no right turn on red for north bound traffic to solve part of the pedestrian’s (usually a middle school student) problem. There has also been signage put up alerting drivers to the crossing pedestrians. Similarly, the pedestrian crossing/ crosswalk from Dunkin’ Donuts on 7th Street to the Town Meat Market will be improved to enhance pedestrian safety. The changed crosswalk will have curb bumpouts (to end the illegal parking at the edges of the crosswalk making pedestrians invisible) and a raised crosswalk (again, making pedestrians more visible) making it clear that the Village favors pedestrians, especially in pedestrian heavy areas like central 7th Street. We are also awaiting delivery of new pedestrian crossing signals for setup at both the Village hall crosswalk on Stewart Avenue (8th Street) and the LIRR/GC Hotel crossing. This would change these signs from their always blinking status to pedestrian activated and will, hopefully, make pedestrians using these crossings safer. Regarding crosswalks, the TC is moving forward with final design on the South Avenue crosswalk, near Rockaway Avenue. Completing this pathway will assist those residents and Adelphi students walking or bicycling to downtown.

IV. Parking Issues

The Traffic Commission is constantly addressing parking sign requests. Some residents want them; others want to be rid of them. Sometimes, those people live on the same block. Parking signs can serve a lot of functions, discouraging all day parking for workers and commuters but allowing for residents to use their streets for parking. Another example, parking at the Raymond Court Parking Lot was restricted to those events that were so popular that the Stewart School and Stewart Field parking lots were full and, therefore, parking at the RCPL was necessary. By controlling the times the RCPL was used and with the

Recreation Department providing open gates and easy access to the fields from the Stewart School Parking Lot and a Police Officer guaranteeing parking was done properly in the Stewart Field Parking Lot, the safety of the children attending events at Stewart Field was assured and the negative impact of the RCPL on residents of Raymond Court was minimized. Indeed, For the last year (365 days), the permitted use under this standard amounted to approximately 9 Sunday morning Thunder football games/events, 11 Saturdays for LL baseball games and St. Josephs School Field Day.

V. Stop Signs

As with parking signs, so with stop signs. Some people want them and others want to be rid of them. Visiting homes that are likely to be impacted by changes is a key part of the TC work. On one such trip, one resident told me we were all sign crazy and we should just go away while other residents have asked us for more signs. During the year, the village added stop signs on Hilton Avenue at 4th Street which we view as a successful change. The TC added stop signs at 1st Street and Mayfair Avenue but the combination of resident complaints of traffic backup and an increased incidence of accidents at the intersection caused the TC to have the signs removed. If the anticipated changes to First Street do not effect changes in the traffic volume and speeds there, additional changes will be evaluated. In other areas of the village, we have made some two way stop signs all way stops (e.g., Kensington, Wyatt, Arthur) and those changes appear to have been beneficial. The TC also played a minor supporting role in the Main Avenue reconfiguration and the new signage and striping there.

VI. County Roads

The Village has far less authority to make changes on County Roads than on Village streets. Nevertheless, in conjunction with the County, the finalization and discussions on implementation of the Cathedral Avenue Study is ongoing. This work will narrow Cathedral Avenue and, if the results are positive, will serve as a template for other roads in the Village which “explode on entry” —

Westminster Road to Rockaway Avenue being a case in point. Indeed, Stewart Avenue from Franklin Avenue to Clinton Road is another example. Stewart Avenue explodes into a six lane road between Franklin and Clinton for no apparent reason. A Stewart Avenue study, akin to the Cathedral Avenue Road Diet, has begun and we hope that will give us approaches to make that area of Stewart Avenue less of a raceway and obtain cost estimates for narrowing Stewart Avenue to four lanes by greening the right lane (except as it approaches Clinton Road eastbound and Franklin Avenue westbound as turn lanes are needed at those locations) and providing protected parking at the apartment buildings on the south side (east bound traffic). This work is time sensitive as the repaving of Stewart Avenue was postponed a year to allow for changes prompted by the results of the study before repaving.

With regard to Clinton Road, the Village has: (i) started the process to have a public hearing on lowering the speed limit from 30mph to 25 mph village wide with the required engineering study underway, (ii) voted to ban buses from Commercial Avenue due to the use/abuse of that road by Not in Service County buses, (iii) voted to bar southbound truck traffic overnight on Clinton Road and Washington Avenue, (iv) commenced an evaluation of the proposed multi million dollar leveling of Clinton Road and (v) sought red light cameras for Clinton Road traffic lights which we are told will be taken up in the next legislative session (January). With regard to Rockaway Avenue near the high school, we will schedule a public hearing to solicit input on the implementation of the County Proposal for the Rockaway Avenue/Merrillon Avenue interchange at the High School once the final proposal is received.

Looking back over our year on the Traffic Commission, we thank the prior TC whose good efforts are now yielding results and our new members, Trustees Sullivan and Finneran, for their work in making drivers and pedestrians safer in the village and thank Commissioner Jackson and DPW Superintendent John Borroni for their consistent and valuable support.