State DOT Commissioner Announces Additional Pedestrian Safety Initiatives On Long Island's Hempstead Turnpike

ALBANY, NY (09/17/2012)(readMedia)-- New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald today announced a second series of pedestrian safety improvements along the 16-mile Hempstead Turnpike on Long Island, work that will complement an ongoing initiative to enhance safety for all users of that busy east-west thoroughfare.

"Under the direction of Governor Andrew Cuomo, DOT has changed its approach in addressing corridors with high accident rates," Commissioner McDonald said. "In cooperation with our local, state and federal partners, we analyzed the entire Hempstead Turnpike corridor this spring and developed a plan for enhancing pedestrian safety at dozens of locations. With much of that Phase I work completed or under way, we're moving forward on additional improvements that require planning, design and – for some locations – construction. These initiatives are being carefully tailored to Hempstead Turnpike to improve safety for all of its users."

Since mid-March, NYSDOT has made a variety of pedestrian safety improvements on Hempstead Turnpike, including remarking 235 crosswalks and widening 126 of them, increasing pedestrian crossing times at 86 traffic signals, reprogramming dozens of crosswalks and adding new features to pedestrian crossing buttons.

The next round of pedestrian safety improvements on Hempstead Turnpike will include new crosswalks, traffic signal installations, modifications and timing changes, bus stop relocations and the installation of 13 raised medians at eight locations. The work being done this year is estimated to cost $1 million.

"We continue to work with New York State in making Nassau County one of the safest places in the nation for pedestrians and drivers," Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano said.

State Senator Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., chairman of the Senate's Transportation Committee, said, "The latest improvements announced by DOT are another positive step towards making Hempstead Turnpike safer for residents. More crosswalks, enhanced signal timing, new traffic lights, and new pedestrian medians will all go a long way towards reducing pedestrian accidents and fatalities on a road which already has seen too many of both."

State Senator Kemp Hannon said, "Pedestrian safety along Hempstead Turnpike is of paramount importance, and I commend Commissioner McDonald and the DOT for adding further improvements to what was already a significant pedestrian safety improvement project."

State Senator Jack M. Martins said, "I commend Commissioner McDonald for her efforts in addressing safety concerns along the turnpike. We must continue to be vigilant in improving pedestrian safety in this major, 16-mile thoroughfare that is used by so many motorists and pedestrians. These projects, combined with motorists using caution and public education, will reduce accidents and make the turnpike safer, which is a goal the entire community shares."

NYSDOT spent $7 million on pedestrian safety improvements along the Hempstead Turnpike over the last five years. As part of that, pedestrian countdown timers were added to all 91 signalized intersections. The timers signal how much time pedestrians have to cross the street, eliminating guesswork and helping to clear intersections before traffic resumes.

Commissioner McDonald on Feb. 15 called for pedestrian safety enhancements along Hempstead Turnpike, directing the first-ever comprehensive engineering safety analysis of the 16-mile corridor. The commissioner called for both short-term and long-term solutions to be developed, established a multi-jurisdictional team of experts to work with NYSDOT to develop and implement improvements, and directed that the initiatives include engineering measures, enforcement of existing traffic laws and public education about how all highway users can safely share the road.

As a result, a team from NYSDOT, the Governor's Traffic Safety Committee, the state Department of Health, the Federal Highway Administration, the Nassau County Traffic Safety Board and the New York Metropolitan Transportation Council recommended a series of short-term pedestrian safety improvements, many of which have been implemented or will be completed this construction season.

In conjunction with NYSDOT's effort, the Nassau County Traffic Safety Board this spring kicked off a public education campaign focused on pedestrian safety and the Nassau County Police Department stepped up enforcement of vehicle and traffic laws along Hempstead Turnpike.

The initiatives being announced today required longer-term study and planning than the initial round of improvements NYSDOT announced. They include:

· Adjusting traffic signal timing along the entire 16-mile Hempstead Turnpike corridor to calm traffic by controlling speeds through the corridor and shortening cycle lengths to reduce the time pedestrians have to wait to cross the road. Many pedestrian crashes occur at night when operating speeds are higher. Changing the signal timing will slow the traffic, enabling vehicles traveling at the proper speed to get green lights, while motorists traveling above the posted speed limit will have to stop at red lights. The changes are being installed west to east and will be completed this month;

· Installing leading pedestrian intervals at an additional 95 locations, giving pedestrians a head start in crossing a street before vehicles are given a green light to turn onto it. This increases the visibility of pedestrians at intersections and encourages motorists to yield the right of way. This feature had already been programmed at 53 crosswalks within 31 signalized intersections along Hempstead Turnpike, most of them this year. The additional 95 locations will bring the total to 148 crosswalks within 85 signalized intersections;

· Installing "No Turn on Red" signs at an additional 142 locations to work in conjunction with the leading pedestrian intervals signal timing. Some signs had been installed earlier this year, bringing the total to 90 locations. The new work will mean these signs will be at 232 locations along Hempstead Turnpike, also helping to improve pedestrian visibility and safety;

· Installing five new crosswalks with sidewalk ramps, pedestrian buttons and countdown timers at existing traffic signals on the west side of Belmont Boulevard in Elmont, the west side of West Gate in Elmont, the east side of Jacob Street in Elmont, the east side of California Avenue/Hofstra Boulevard in Uniondale, and the east side of Silver Lane in Levittown. The new crosswalks are scheduled to be designed this fall, with construction to start in November. Additional locations also are being assessed for new crosswalks;

· Installing traffic signals at three locations and modifying a signal at a fourth. Traffic signals will be installed at Sterling Road in Elmont, Biltmore Avenue in Elmont and Kernochan Avenue in the Village of Hempstead. In addition, a flashing signal for emergency vehicles at Gotham Avenue in Elmont will be changed to a three-color signal. New crosswalks with sidewalk ramps, pedestrian buttons and countdown timers will be installed across the turnpike at all four locations;

· Installing median fencing between Carmen Avenue and Franklin Avenue in East Meadow;

· Installing raised medians, with mountable curbs, at locations where pedestrians frequently cross mid-block to provide refuge for them when they cannot get all the way across the Turnpike because of traffic. NYSDOT encourages pedestrians to cross at traffic signals, but recognizes there are some locations where they frequently cross mid-block for convenience. The medians will be installed by the year's end in:

• Elmont between Plainfield Road and Elmont Road. The median will be approximately 230-feet long;
• Elmont at Elmont Library. A 200-foot median will be installed at Lincoln Street and a 30-foot median at in front of the library;
• Franklin Square in the vicinity of Lexington and Randolph Avenues. The plan is for three medians of 40, 50, and 80 feet each;
• Franklin Square west of Franklin Avenue and New Hyde Park Road. A 35-foot-long median will be installed in front of the movie theater and Taco Bell;
• Franklin Square: A 50-foot-long island will be installed in front of 7-Eleven near Harrison Avenue and a 60-foot-long island will be installed between Lincoln Road and Clafin Boulevard;
• West Hempstead, where a 110-foot-long island will be installed between Buckingham Road and Broad Street and a 30-foot island will be installed in front of Wendy's;
• The Village of Hempstead: A 170-foot-long island is planned between Cathedral and Hilton Avenues; and
• The Village of Hempstead: A 60-foot island is planned between Fairview Boulevard and Kernochan Avenue.

· Relocating six NICE bus stops so that they are closer to existing marked crosswalks or ones being planned. Other locations also are being evaluated. The bus stops being moved are at the following locations on Hempstead Turnpike:

• Eastbound between Hill Avenue and Butler Boulevard. This bus stop will be moved closer to Hill Avenue;
• Eastbound between Nassau Boulevard and Munson Avenue. This bus stop will be moved closer to Nassau Boulevard;
• Westbound, west of South Greenway. This bus stop will be moved closer to Nassau Boulevard;
• Eastbound, west of the corner of Walnut Street. This bus stop will be moved closer to Walnut Street;
• Westbound, between Lawrence Street and Oak Street. This bus stop will be moved west of Oak Street; and
• Eastbound, between Courtenay Road and Oak Street. This bus stop will be moved west of Oak Street.

NYSDOT conducted a detailed study of the entire length of Hempstead Turnpike to determine how best to improve its safety. Those findings are the basis for the pedestrian safety improvements being implemented.

NYSDOT's engineering analysis of Hempstead Turnpike examined crash data, traffic signal functioning, pedestrian markings, lighting conditions, vehicle speeds, bus stops and pedestrian behavior from the border of Queens and Nassau counties in the Town of Hempstead to the Nassau/Suffolk County border in the Town of Oyster Bay.

NYSDOT reviewed every motor vehicle crash involving a pedestrian from January 1, 2008, to December 31, 2011. There were 326 pedestrian crashes identified, including 20 fatalities (2 people were killed in one crash).

On NYSDOT-maintained sections of Hempstead Turnpike, there were 230 pedestrian crashes, including 17 fatalities analyzed. The study found:

• Motorists failing to yield the right of way to pedestrians was cited as a contributing factor 47 percent of the time and driver distraction was listed as a contributing factor in 20 percent of all pedestrian fatalities;
• Most of the pedestrian fatalities involved males (76 percent);
• Pedestrian error was noted as a contributing factor in 67 percent of all pedestrian crashes;
• Most crashes occurred when pedestrians were crossing midblock (59 percent) or crossing against a traffic signal (35 percent);
• 82 percent, or 14 of the 17 fatalities, occurred at night;
• In 8 of the 17 fatalities, the pedestrian was legally impaired by alcohol or drugs;
• 36 percent of all crashes involved a pedestrian more than 50 years old; and
• Vehicle speeds in off-peak travel hours also may be a factor; Speeds tend to be higher when there is less traffic.

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