Recently, the Department of Transportation presented a proposal to improve traffic safety on West End Avenue at a meeting sponsored by Community Board 7 and Councilmember Helen Rosenthal. And earlier this week, CB7 overwhelmingly embraced the plan with a near unanimous vote.
Among other modifications, DOT plans what it calls a 4 to 3 conversion. This means that the traditional four lanes of traffic -- two northbound and two southbound -- are downsized to one lane in each direction. There will be one center for what are called "turn bays" to accommodate cars making left turns. You can scroll through the whole slideshow here.
I think residents of West End Avenue above W. 96th Street share a feeling similar to mine: with West End Avenue petering out just north of W. 106th Street, the Bloomingdale stretch of the avenue can at times resemble a cul de sac. Southbound cars on Broadway north of W. 107th tend not to veer off Broadway to cruise down West End and northbound drivers know that West End will terminate and therefore isn't conducive to "thru driving." That phenomenon can give West End a sleepy quality, and it gives the residents a sense that the avenue is safe. However that small village feel has begun to evaporate. There has been an alarming increase in speeding. Additionally in this area -- and unacceptably -- there has been a noticeable uptick in use of West End by drivers of commercial vehicles. Policing of the speed limit and no-commerical-traffic rules is definitely in order.
In other deveopments, good news came to Broadway this summer when a 25 mph speed limit was set thanks to a bill passed by the State that was sponsored by our very own Danny O'Donnell. The city defers to the state in matters of speed limit so the process was more involved.
This so-called "slow zone" runs up Broadway from Columbus Circle. The West Side Rag did a nice piece of reporting on it here. (Thanks, Avi!)
By Caitlin Hawke
h/t to the unstoppable Jen Chung, editor of Gothamist, for the excellent coverage and images of DOT's proposal.
Among other modifications, DOT plans what it calls a 4 to 3 conversion. This means that the traditional four lanes of traffic -- two northbound and two southbound -- are downsized to one lane in each direction. There will be one center for what are called "turn bays" to accommodate cars making left turns. You can scroll through the whole slideshow here.
I think residents of West End Avenue above W. 96th Street share a feeling similar to mine: with West End Avenue petering out just north of W. 106th Street, the Bloomingdale stretch of the avenue can at times resemble a cul de sac. Southbound cars on Broadway north of W. 107th tend not to veer off Broadway to cruise down West End and northbound drivers know that West End will terminate and therefore isn't conducive to "thru driving." That phenomenon can give West End a sleepy quality, and it gives the residents a sense that the avenue is safe. However that small village feel has begun to evaporate. There has been an alarming increase in speeding. Additionally in this area -- and unacceptably -- there has been a noticeable uptick in use of West End by drivers of commercial vehicles. Policing of the speed limit and no-commerical-traffic rules is definitely in order.
In other deveopments, good news came to Broadway this summer when a 25 mph speed limit was set thanks to a bill passed by the State that was sponsored by our very own Danny O'Donnell. The city defers to the state in matters of speed limit so the process was more involved.
This so-called "slow zone" runs up Broadway from Columbus Circle. The West Side Rag did a nice piece of reporting on it here. (Thanks, Avi!)
By Caitlin Hawke
h/t to the unstoppable Jen Chung, editor of Gothamist, for the excellent coverage and images of DOT's proposal.
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