Bayside Residents Fuming Over Dangerous Intersection

The intersection at 46th Ave. and the southbound Clearview Expwy service road in Bayside has yet to be coined a catchy nickname like "The Boulevard of Broken Dreams," but to Christophers grandmother Loretta Napier, the name is all too fitting.
"Not enough has been done," Napier told The Queens Courier after learning that a DOT study deemed a traffic light was not needed at the intersection. "People paid plenty of attention six months ago, but that has all dissipated. We dont want another childs life to be lost due to lack of concern."
Napier invited DOT Commissioner Iris Weinshall to take a personal look at the corner she calls a "death trap" and decide for herself whether the intersection was dangerous enough to warrant a traffic light.
"Their study was simply not good enough," she said, "but I am going to fight with my dying breath to make this happen."
Christophers tragic story is not the first one to be told at the Bayside intersection. Six years ago, another 11-year-old boy, John Shin lost his life when he was struck by an oncoming automobile.
The intersection runs perpendicular to the Clearview Expwy, and is fed further by pedestrians and bicyclists who travel across the 46th Ave. pedestrian bridge. Following Christophers death, "lollipops" were put up along the service road to keep drivers from veering too close to the corner. In addition, a large red cone was put up at the corner to, in theory, keep pedestrians from veering too far into the intersection. Despite these minor safety precautions, City Council candidate David Weprin said simply not enough is being done.
"Two boys were killed there, and that should take precedence over any traffic study," said Weprin, who wrote a letter to Weinshall, requesting the DOT reconsider their recommendation and install a traffic light. "The area possesses a lot of child activity. Children frequently use the bridge in order to go to school. We cannot allow another accident to occur, another death to take place, another child to be killed."
Officer Anthony Lombardi of the 111 Pct. called the corner "dangerous" but added that the DOT has limited the amount of assistance the police can provide at the corner. "The DOT determined there are not enough accidents and not a big enough flow of traffic to warrant putting up a [traffic] light or stop sign," said Lombardi. "However, we will continue to assist the community in any way we can."
Lombardi said that although he doesnt see a tremendous amount of accidents at the corner, he would recommend increasing safety precautions. "Two young boys died at the corner, and that should have been an eye opener," he said. "That kid of tragedy could definitely happen again."
Repeated calls by The Queens Courier to the DOT went unreturned by presstime.
As a tribute to Christophers life, Community Board 11 is considering a proposal this week to rename the 46th Ave. Bridge the Christopher Adam Scott Memorial Bridge.