First the Department of Transportation giveth, then the Department of Transportation taketh away.
Two weeks ago, a contractor hired by the DOT painted new crosswalk lines and big block letters that say “STOP” at the busy intersection and school crossing at Manhattan College Parkway and Waldo Avenue.
“We thought ‘oh I guess they’ll put stop signs in.’ We were happy about it,” nearby resident Jeff Ballinger said.
But not long after the paint dried, the DOT removed the crosswalk on June 25, and moved a block up Manhattan College Parkway to install one at the less busy West 244th Street intersection.
Despite the fact that most residents would agree that the contractor got it right the first time, the city is sticking with its story.
According to the DOT, the intersection is now properly installed: two new stop signs, freshly painted crosswalks and the words, “X-ING SCHOOL” painted in the street outside of the Methodist Church Home for the aged.
As of press time, the intersection at Manhattan College Parkway and Waldo Avenue has no painted crosswalks. There are no traffic safety measures in place, just the remaining scratch marks from where the DOT’s contractor ground away fresh paint.
“The intersection needs stop signs and now it doesn’t even have a crosswalk,” Mr. Ballinger wrote in an e-mail to the community board, seeking help with the problem.
Manhattan College Parkway and Waldo Avenue is known in the neighborhood as a hazard for pedestrians and motorists. While college is in session, students cross to get to class at the school’s lower campus on Corlear Avenue, to their dorms on West 238th Street, or just to grab a slice at Goodfellas or sandwich at Jasper’s Deli. The road winds around the Manhattan College campus and motorists traveling between the Henry Hudson Parkway and Broadway tend to speed around the blind curve.
For years, concerned residents and community board members have asked the DOT to do something, but to no avail.
Before the road work was completed recently, there WERE crosswalks painted there -- which still weren't enough, because it needs to be a 3-way stop. How can we get the DOT to at least repaint the crosswalks that used to be there?
This situation is now completely intolerable for the people who live, visit and go to school in this neighborhood. If you're crossing from the Manhattan College side to our building (3875 Waldo), you literally have to listen for traffic coming from your left around the blind curve, because "blind" is an accurate description.
Without the previously painted crosswalks there, drivers don't usually stop for you, even if you're in the middle of crossing the street.
We have heard a rumor that the DOT is waiting for a pedestrian to die at this intersection before they add stop signs. Sounds outrageous, but their actions up until now have supported that rumor.
Do they need us to take up a collection for the cost of repainting the crosswalks that were there before, and then adding stop signs? If so, I'll gladly volunteer to get it started. Tell me where to send the first check.
(Full disclosure: I am Jeff Ballinger's wife; he is quoted in the story.) Saturday, July 7, 2012|Report this
the last thing this intersection needs is a three way stop, or any stop signs for that matter.
Instead, I propose a class at Manhattan College in teaching the kids how to cross a street properly. Obviously, these children were not taught that skill when they grew up. i've had kids cross the street right in front my my car (driving below speed limit and very carefully). Basically, it was like they were asking to be killed by a car.
The fact that there are no accidents or pedestrian injuries at this intersection is surprising, given how idiotic the Manhattan College students are when they cross the street without even looking one way, let alone two ways.
when the improperly installed stop signs were there a few weeks ago, it caused more problems than it helped, because nobody could figure out who was supposed to yield or drive. This indecision usually leads to disasters.
But again, I will repeat, Manhattan College needs a PhD level class in crossing a street properly for their obviously brain dead "students" Saturday, July 7, 2012|Report this
I'm sorry, but I have to reply to that ludicrous comment. More than just students cross the street. So are you saying that all the residents of our building, for example, don't know how to cross the street properly? That's absurd. The students are gone right now, and there are still near misses there every day.
When the stop signs were there for a couple of days, the drivers disobeyed the law by not stopping. So how is that the fault of the pedestrians?
And what about the cars that speed through there? Is that the pedestrians' fault?
With the blind curve, it's literally listen closely for cars, or possibly get hit. The city needs to fix this intersection, and fast before someone does get hit. Sunday, July 8, 2012|Report this
Actually, there never were any actual stop signs installed. Only a word printed on the street that said stop. But since there were no actual stop signs, the effect was extremely confusing, which led to a lot of people simply ignoring the street-printed words.
Also, my post was strictly talking about the moronic MH students. I am not exactly sure why you transposed that to mean an attack on the residents of your building.
the fact is, these new signs generally fix a problem that "ain't broke." That interesection has been that way with the one stop sign for decades, and I bet the accident numbers there are very low. The very fact that you say "The city needs to fix this intersection, and fast before someone does get hit" only proves the point that there is no problem there, since no one, according to your quote, has been hit yet.
When the do gooder pols came into my neighborhood and installed unnecessary traffic lights everywhere instead of the stop signs that had been in place for decades, thetraffic problems got a hell of a lot worse, and now we have the added pleasure of cars honking every 2 minutes when the light turns green. All this under an old age home too. Thanks Koppell!
All I can say is the old adage applies.....If it ain't broke, don't fix it. And i'd like an addendum to that which reads, "especially letting a politician do it" Monday, July 9, 2012|Report this