New Traffic Signs Slated For Six Roadways

A dozen new variable-message traffic information signs will soon be flashing alerts along six major Queens highways, and the State Transportation Department (DOT) has more in the planning stage, The Queens Courier learned.
The large overhead signs will tell motoristsparticularly on truck-crowded roadwaysof oncoming rush-hour tie-ups and traffic emergencies.
State DOT crews and engineers are currently working across Queens at the following highways:
Testing will begin on signs and cameras installed at five key points along the Van Wyck Expressway, north of the Kew Garden interchange, and on the Grand Central Parkway, near Shea Stadium.
New cameras and signs are currently being installed on various points along the Grand Central Parkway, and the Brooklyn-Queens and Whitestone Expressways, which are currently being reconstructed.
The existing sign system will be enhanced on the busy Van Wyck Expressway, below the Kew Gardens interchange.
In addition, three already-blinking signs on the L.I.E., just east of the Cross Island Parkway, will soon become operational.
The program utilizes a closed-circuit television camera-scanning system that monitors on-site traffic conditions with strategically placed cameras. This information is sent to the DOTs command center in Long Island City, which flashes warning or informational messages on black rectangular signs to oncoming motorists.
DOT Regional Director Douglas A. Currey stated, "These projects will be under construction over the next few years and will increase our current capabilities of alerting New York City motorists of current highway conditions."
Queens Borough President Helen Marshall hailed the rapid expansion of the traffic alert program in Queens because "it provides timely emergency information and, at the same time, gives drivers alternate routes." She said that, in time of a national emergency, she welcomed programs that speed up police, fire and ambulance responses.
The new signs will widely expand the borough traffic information system that is already operational on the Long Island Expressway, between the Queens Midtown Tunnel and the Van Wyck, and on the Van Wyck, between the Interchange and JFK Airport.
Community Board 7 Chairperson Gene Kelty welcomed the highway signs to help combat the mounting daily traffic jams in the vicinity of the College Point Corporate Park, as well as on the Van Wyck access to downtown Flushing.
He noted the 10-day traffic build-ups on the Grand Central Parkway, and the Van Wyck and Whitestone Expressways during the national tennis tournament, coupled with a Shea Stadium event, can cause life-threatening delays for operators of emergency vehicles. His board is completely surrounded by seven major highways [the Van Wyck, Cross Island, Clearview, Grand Central, Whitestone and L.I.E.].
The signs will also display public service messages: ozone alerts, Amber alerts, weather reports and other major incidents.