Neighbor Suggests Funding Safety Improvements For Coney Island Avenue & Cortelyou Road Through Participatory Budgeting

As part of the city’s participatory budgeting program (a process that allows residents to have a direct say on what they’d like to see funded in their area), neighbor Amanda suggested a “pedestrian friendly intersection at Coney Island Avenue and Cortelyou Road,” which she said would allow people to “safely cross the street without the fear of being hit by turning buses, cars, and trucks, despite the walk signal, and those running red lights.”

While Councilman Mathieu Eugene, who represents the area at Cortelyou and Coney Island Avenue, isn’t involved in the participatory budgeting (legislators are able to opt to be part of the program), nearby lawmakers are, including Councilman Jumaane Williams and Councilman Brad Lander. As part of participatory budgeting, anyone is able to suggest projects outside of district lines, but, ultimately, only residents living in the participating lawmaker’s district will be able to vote on the proposals.

A number of neighbors have thrown their support behind Amanda’s suggestion to make the intersection safer – something which many of us have long wanted.

Neighbor Daniel Silverman wrote:

This would be a game changer for both Ditmas Park & Kensington. Given that there’s been such intense growth in the restaurant/retail/service biz between Stratford and East 9th Streets on Cortelyou and on CIA between Avenue C and Ditmas Avenue, it’s about time the proper attention was paid to safety.

And neighbor Michele Giordano too was enthusiastic about the proposal:

I cross this intersection at minimum 2x a day with my baby and often have to deal with vehicles that are trying to turn while there is a walk sign, those that are running lights, or cars that are beeping to not let pedestrians pass. I wish there was more time to let a pedestrian cross without having to manage the complication of the light allowing cars to turn into the crosswalk. This is a family-friendly neighborhood that deserves better!

To find out more about participatory budgeting, you can go to the city’s website, as well as check out what we’ve written about it here and on our sister site, KensingtonBK.

What do you think? What would you like to see happen at the intersection of Cortelyou and CIA to make life safer?