PEDESTRIAN-UNFRIENDLY CORNER

Following complaints about a dangerous area near East 60th Street and Second Avenue, Assembly Member Jonathan Bing organized a visit to the intersection to discuss some pedestrian-friendly changes. City officials and community leaders, including the Department of Transportation"s Manhattan Borough Commissioner Margaret Forgione, attended the Nov. 7 tour. As an immediate remedy, the department will fill crosswalk potholes that pose a hazard to the elderly or disabled, according to department officials. There is also a problem coming off the 59th Street Bridge, where East 60th Street narrows from three lanes to two, causing vehicles to try to outmaneuver each other. â??Cars are not clear of where they"re supposed to go, Bing said. â??So cars jockey into position. The department is planning to place markings on the street to better direct cars coming off the bridge. The dangerous intersection came to officials" attention because of a constituent complaint at Mayor Michael Bloomberg"s October town hall meeting on the Upper East Side. Barry Schneider, president of the East Sixties Neighborhood Association, organized the town hall and attended the walkthrough. The block is unique because of the amount of bridge traffic, Schneider said. While he would have preferred traffic lights that count down to the green light, he lauded the department for making necessary improvements to pedestrian safety. â??We made a step in the right direction, Schneider said. â??And we have to make sure everything is implemented in a timely fashion.