Residents are criticizing the poor street conditions in Bayside, as cars traveling down local streets run into potholes, large cracks and uneven roads.
Some like Danielle Chase, blame the ongoing sewer and water main replacement for the pothole hell plaguing the neighborhood.
“Most of the poor street conditions are due to the never-ending construction going on. 38th Avenue from the service road to 217th [Street] is a warzone,” Chase told QNS.
The Department of Design and Construction (DDC) broke ground on the $62.5 million project in May 2018. The agency aims to replace over seven miles of new water mains and install new storm and sanitary sewers, 80 new fire hydrants and catch basins in Bayside and Flushing.
In January 2019, QNS reported that DDC had already completed work in the following areas in Bayside:
- 216th Street from 39th Avenue to 38th Avenue
- 38th Avenue from 216th Street to 207th Street
- 39th Avenue from 215th Street to 216th Street
DDC said that the project is set to be completed in 2021.
According to nyc.gov, residents can file complaints about potholes, cave-ins, utility damage and hummocks — roadway asphalt that has been pushed into a wave shape — online or by calling 311. But area resident Arlene Mordjikin said the complaints have not made a difference.
“Bell Boulevard between Horace Harding Expressway and 48th Avenue needs to be repaved. I’ve reached out to 311 since 2016 and I’m still waiting,” said Mordjikian.
Other residents cited 217th Street between 46th and 47th Avenues, 38th Avenue from 214th to 221st Streets and “all of 32nd Avenue from Francis Lewis to Bell Boulevard” as areas that desperately need repaving.
The Department of Transportation’s (DOT) “The Daily Pothole” blog reported that citywide, the agency has paved 197.85 lane miles as of May 11 and repaired 116,617 potholes as of May 13.
QNS reached out to DOT and DDC for comment and is awaiting responses from both.
