Safety Improvements Greenlighted for Dangerous Stretch of Park Avenue in Wallabout

On Tuesday night, Community Board 2’s transportation committee unanimously approved the DOT’s plan to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists on Park Avenue between Navy and Steuben streets. Park has long been one of the borough’s most dangerous streets. It’s situated directly underneath the BQE and includes several parking areas in the middle of the road. Drivers often pull out of these parking areas into fast-moving traffic where nearly three quarters of drivers are speeding. The mile-long corridor has 13.6 fatalities or series injuries per mile, and a third of all crashes happen at a right angle, usually involving a driver running a red light, according to DOT data.

The DOT adapted much of its plan from one released by the Myrtle Avenue Revitalization Project and Architecture for Humanity in 2012. Safety improvements include painting parking lanes and a buffer on the eastbound side of the street, another parking lane on the westbound side, and painting a buffer on the westbound side to narrow it down to two lanes (from three) at Williamsburg Place. Pedestrians will also have more time to cross the street and gain some protection from barriers installed on one side of the parking areas. The city hopes to implement the new safety measures in September. You can see the full presentation here.

Image via DOT