86th Street Reconfiguration Project Gets The Green Light
The intersection at Fourth Avenue and 86th Street has been approved for a large reconfiguration project to aid in safer driving and pedestrian access.
Community Board 10 says that area is high with driver and pedestrian accidents, according to CB10 District Manager Josephine Beckmann. After months of talk, Community Board 10 and DOT agreed on a plan to add traffic safety measures that would reduce injury and death.
The board approved the addition of a right hand turn restriction on traffic moving eastbound at Fourth Avenue. This affects Dyker Heights and Bensonhurst in that cars moving towards either of the two neighborhoods will not be able to turn onto Fourth Avenue from 86th Street, according to Home Reporter News.
Other planned changes include: Left turn restrictions for traffic on Third and Fourth Avenues onto 86th Street; countdown signals on all pedestrian crosswalks in the corridor and a traffic light configuration for all the lights on 86th Street, between Fifth and Fourth Avenues to Shore Road; and a new stop sign at 87th Street and Ridge Boulevard.
“There is a great deal of automobile and pedestrian contact by vehicles making that right turn,” said Brian Kieran, chair of the Traffic and Transportation Committee. “This should improve bus safety on that block, as well.”
Bensonhurst local, Vinny S. says that while he this may help traffic in Bay Ridge, he’s weary of how it will impact traffic east on 86th Street.
“There are so many traffic issues along 86th around here. I’m wondering how this affects our area. Maybe we should have a big traffic project to get rid of all the double parked unloading trucks,” he says.
