Roosevelt Avenue (Photo: Google Earth)
Aug. 4, 2014 By Michael Florio
The traffic on Roosevelt Avenue is likely to move a little slower come September.
The Department of Transportation announced Friday that 14 new slow zones are about to be rolled out across the city, including a 5.8 mile stretch on Roosevelt Avenue.
The DOT announcement represents phase 2 of its Arterial Slow Zone program, which aims to clamp down on dangerous driving by reducing the speed limit to 25 MPH, down from 30 MPH.
The slow zone on Roosevelt Avenue will go into effect in September—and will go from Queens Blvd to 154th Street. According to the DOT, there were five fatalities from 2008 to 2012 on this stretch of roadway.
The Arterial Slow Zones are not just about reducing the speed limit. The DOT will also change the signal timing to reduce speed and will call on the NYPD for increased enforcement. The DOT will also install temporary speed boards to alert drivers of the new speed limit.
“This will have a dramatic impact on the amount of traffic fatalities and serious injuries our City experiences every year,” said Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer. “By reducing the speed limit and increasing traffic enforcement along Roosevelt Avenue, we can and will prevent tragedy from occurring.”
Phase one of the Arterial Slow Zone program was announced in May, and includes stretches of Northern Blvd and Queens Blvd.
The Northern Boulevard slow zone runs for 4.2 miles, from 40th Road to 114th Street.
Since 2008, there have been five fatalities on Northern Boulevard. One of the accidents involved 8-year-old Noshat Nahian, who was fatally struck by a truck on his way to school by 61st Street, according to the DOT.
The Queens Boulevard slow zone is 7.4 miles long, from Jackson Avenue to Hillside Avenue. There were 23 deaths in the past six years at this location.
