Pol: Target Northern Blvd. Traffic
Lawmakers again pushed for increased safety on city streets during a press conference in Woodside last Thursday, Feb. 6.
The event, held by City Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, took place at the corner of Northern Boulevard and 48th Street, where five people waiting at a bus stop on Feb. 1 were struck and injured by an out-of-control car.
Though the driver fled the scene, police picked him up the following day for the hit-and-run crash.
Van Bramer called for the segment of Northern Boulevard between 39th and 61st streets through Woodside and Long Island City be added to the Vision Zero initiative. Launched last month by Mayor Bill de Blasio, Vision Zero aims to implement safety improvements on city streets most prone to vehicular and pedestrian accidents.
“It is no secret that Northern Boulevard is one of the city’s most dangerous roadways,” Van Bramer said. “In the last several years, too many pedestrians’ lives have been claimed by crashes that could have been prevented. As the administration’s interagency working group continues to identify the city’s most hazardous thoroughfares, I ask that they give Northern Boulevard consideration in an effort to put an end to the carnage that has occurred here on the boulevard.”
Van Bramer cited a report by the Tri-State Transportation Campaign which identified Northern Boulevard as one of the city’s most dangerous roads. Five pedestrians reportedly died in accidents on the thoroughfare between 2010 and 2012.
Joining Van Bramer at last Thursday’s press conference were State Sen. Michael Gianaris and Assemblywoman Margaret Markey, both of whom are sponsoring legislation to increase penalties against suspended drivers involved in serious vehicular accidents. Representatives of Transportation Alternatives and Make Queens Safer-advocacy groups backing Vision Zero and the Gianaris/Markey bill-were also in attendance.
“Our community knows very well that we are home to too many deadly streets and Northern Boulevard is undoubtedly among the worst,” Gianaris added. “Recent months have seen multiple serious crashes along Northern Boulevard, including one that took the young life of Noshat Nahian.”
Gianaris referred to the 8-year-old boy who was struck and killed by a truck on Dec. 20, 2013, at the corner of Northern Boulevard and 61st Street.
“With the horrific accidents we’ve seen here in Queens just in the past month, elected officials and community leaders couldn’t be more united behind the Mayor’s Vision Zero initiative,” added Markey. “What happed at this intersection is yet another reminder of the dangers that pedestrians face from irresponsible drivers at locations such as those Councilman Van Bramer identified.”
Seeking safety in Maspeth
Meanwhile, Markey announced on Monday, Feb. 10, she recently met with city Department of Transportation (DOT) Queens Borough Commissioner Dalila Hall and representatives of the 104th Precinct to discuss safety measures for Grand Avenue in Maspeth.
As previously reported, the strip has seen a number of vehicular accidents involving pedestrians in the last year. Last September, five I.S. 73 students were struck by an out-ofcontrol car that mounted the sidewalk near the corner of Grand Avenue and 71st Street.
Then, on Jan. 20, a 68-year-old woman was fatally hit by a car making an illegal left turn from 69th Place northbound onto Grand Avenue westbound.
“We made great progress for safety on Grand Avenue two years ago when the city finally acted to get big trucks off lower Grand and Flushing avenues. But we’ve seen recently that street safety is still not adequate,” Markey said, referring to the activation of the Maspeth Truck Bypass route, which directs commercial vehicles through the neighborhood’s industrial section.
“Clearly, there needs to be more enforcement of driving rules and safety improvements to protect our citizens,” she added.
According to Markey, the DOT is examining a number of options to immediately improve pedestrian safety along Grand Avenue.
