Making Third and Fourth Avenues Safer for Pedestrians

While there are many streets in New York City that are unfriendly to pedestrians, Third and Fourth Avenues in Brooklyn are at the top of the list. Recent accidents in which pedestrians have been injured and children have been run down and killed have shined a light on the problems. The meeting will take place on Saturday (6/9) from 9:00 AM – 12:00 noon at P.S. 24, which is located at 427 38th Street, at 4th Avenue. (Take the D, M, N, R to 36th Street in Sunset Park.) It is sponsored by the District 15 Community Education Council and Community Board 7, and co-sponsored by the Boerum Hill Association, the Park Slope Civic Council, Park Slope Neighbors and UPROSE. Here's a bit from the announcement:

From Atlantic Avenue to 65th Street, heavy and dangerous traffic is hurting our quality of life and jeopardizing the safety of our children. Many families share the same concerns about truck traffic, enforcement issues, and the need for safer walking conditions. Please join us as we hear from transportation experts on accident trends, pilot projects, and the best ways to prevent crashes along 3rd and 4th Avenues.

This forum will be the first step in a community-led vision for safe, walkable streets around our schools and other sensitive locations on 3rd and 4th Avenues. There is already a traffic-calming plan for Downtown Brooklyn. It’s time to make that vision a reality, and to extend the plan into Sunset Park. We must let the city know that planning for our children’s safety is more important than planning for traffic. Your input and expertise is greatly needed! There will be ample opportunity for questions and comments, plus a huge map of the avenues, where you can note concerns about particular intersections.

Improvements at some intersections, including one where a four-year-old was killed by an SUV at Third Avenue and Baltic Street, were supposed to be completed last year. You can read more about the forum, as always, at Streets Blog.