72nd Road (Google)
Nov. 21, 2017 By Tara Law
A Forest Hills street that many residents claim is narrow and often congested may soon be converted to one-way.
Community Board 6, which covers Forest Hills and adjacent areas, will soon be reviewing a Department of Transportation proposal to convert 72nd Road between Grand Central Parkway and Queens Boulevard from a two-way to a one-way.
The initiative was triggered by residents who requested the street be changed in response to heavy traffic volume and the narrowness of the roadway, according to Frank Gulluscio, district manager of Community Board 6.
Residents claim that numerous fender benders have taken place on the street, Gulluscio said.
The DOT will implement the proposed conversion should the community board vote to approve it and formally submits a written request.
Gulluscio said that the board aims to have a vote at its Dec. 13 meeting.
The DOT determined that converting the road is “feasible” in an engineering study conducted this summer at the community board’s request. A DOT spokesman said that the department will present the findings to the community board once the board finalizes a date.
The DOT said that the road will still be adequately accessible to first responders after the conversion.
“During previous one-way conversions, we have not observed problems for emergency vehicles accessing areas once the street direction was changed,” said a DOT spokesperson.
