Sept. 3, 2015 By Jackie Strawbridge
Speed bumps and signage will pop up on several Astoria blocks over the next couple of weeks as the Department of Transportation installs a new slow zone.
This slow zone stretches from 30th Avenue to Astoria Boulevard, and 21st Street to Steinway Street. It is one of several “neighborhood slow zones” that the DOT has been installing citywide since 2012.
The speed limit inside the slow zone is 20 mph. Installation has begun on 14 new speed bumps and 20 “gateway” signs. The “gateway” signs indicate the start of the slow zone and are being installed at its boundaries.
Eight speed bumps already exist within this area.
Per the agency’s website, the DOT selects slow zone locations based on crash history, proximity to schools and community support, among other criteria.
Community Board 1 approved the slow zone plan in June.
Councilman Costa Constantinides joined DOT officials Thursday morning at a freshly-installed speed bump on 37th Street between 28th Avenue and Astoria Boulevard.
Constantinides said that “the number one issue” that constituents have raised regarding traffic safety in this region has been speeding to or from the Grand Central Parkway.
“We want to make sure that people feel safe as they’re crossing the streets in their communities, and they don’t feel that they’re part of a highway system,” he said.
The 14 speed bumps will be installed over the course of the next couple of weeks, followed by the gateway signage and 20 mph pavement markings.
DOT Queens Borough Commissioner Nicole Garcia said that the full slow zone installation should be finished by early October.
