Safety Upgrades Planned For Dangerous Fort Greene Intersections

After a long Community Board 2 Transportation & Safety Committee meeting Thursday evening, the NYC Department of Transportation agreed to a group of Fort Greene residents’ request to implement pedestrian safety measures at a dangerous intersection outside Fort Greene Park.

This safety initiative was the brainchild of three concerned locals, Shayna Kulik, Raffaella Pierson, and Carla Music, who wanted to fix the unsafe traffic flow at the Willoughby Avenue and Washington Park intersection. The busy intersection currently does not have a stop sign, a pedestrian sign, or a painted crosswalk, and cars frequently speed down this strip.

Armed with a petition with nearly 800 signatures and backed by several supportive community members, the trio addressed the Community Board and DOT, detailing the urgent need for a stop sign at the intersection that leads to an entrance to Fort Greene Park.

“The DOT came to the meeting with a really great plan and lots of data that supported the needs of the community,” Kulik told BKLYNER. “We we were told we made a big impact with the stories and signatures we shared to get everything safer streets require, including a stop sign on Washington Park, two crosswalks and the removal of a hotly contested corner parking spot that’s responsible for a dangerous blind left turn onto Willoughby Avenue.”

These safety upgrades, along with the installation of additional crosswalks throughout the neighborhoods of Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, will be implemented this summer, Kulik says DOT promised.

“I hope this small initiative inspires others to become more active in their community,” Kulik said, “because change is certainly possible!”