York Avenues Confusing Cross-Walk
By [Reid Spagna] A crossing signal at a York Avenue intersection continues to baffle pedestrians, with some unknowingly walking into oncoming traffic. In October 2009, the Department of Transportation (DOT) installed a â??Wait for Walk signal on the northeast corner of East 79th Street and York Avenue. While it was meant to aid people in crossing the two-lane avenue, the signal has confused some pedestrians. All of the northbound traffic on York Avenue gets a green light, also allowing cars to turn onto East 79th Street. But southbound traffic on York Avenue is at a red light. When people see the southbound traffic halted at a red light, some assume it is safe to cross, even though the crosswalk light says â??Don"t Walk. During one recent rush hour, half a dozen pedestrians were trapped between the two lanes as vehicles surged up the northbound lane. One pedestrian, Tara Mendelson, started walking into traffic unaware that the signal read â??Don"t Walk. She also missed the â??Wait for Walk Signal sign posted on the southwest corner of the intersection. â??I am not a driver so I can"t tell if it has a purpose, said Mendelson. â??It"s definitely confusing for pedestrians when they are not used to the two-way avenue. While some neighborhood residents were able to recognize the special crossing, many appeared to be puzzled by the intersection"s unique arrangement. One man looked slightly perplexed by the setup, although he did not cross. Numerous people on the northwest corner wore the same expression on their faces, but opted to wait for the proper â??Walk signal before venturing across the avenue. City officials say their offices have received complaints about the confusing intersection. In a July 27 letter to Margaret Forgione, the Manhattan commissioner for the DOT, Borough President Scott Stringer requested that the department modify the intersection"s signals. There have been twice as many accidents including injury at the site in the first six months of 2010 than during the entirety of 2009, Stringer wrote in the letter. He is asking for a change in the traffic signal. â??Although precautionary signs are posted around the intersection instructing vehicles to yield to pedestrians and for pedestrians to â??Wait for Walk Signal," additional signage is clearly not enough to mitigate confusion, Stringer wrote. The NYPD has reportedly begun to monitor the corner more closely in hopes of obtaining accident reports, Stringer said. However, the borough president noted that prevention of such accidents should be a higher priority than simply accounting for them. In November 2009, Assembly Member Micah Kellner wrote a similar letter complaining of the confusing traffic light. In response, the Department of Transportation stuck by its traffic configuration, saying that stopping northbound traffic while cars make left-hand turns would create a backup along York Avenue. The Department of Transportation says there is adequate crossing time for pedestrians. The pedestrians have eight-seconds to cross both York Avenue and East 79th Street when cars are stopped. The department will monitor the intersection but there is no plan to remove the signal. Despite the confusion, there were pedestriansˆ that, in true New York fashion, attempted to navigate their way across the avenue between the gaps of moving vehicles. Eric W. knowingly crossed the street when cars in the southbound lane stopped moving. â??I saw the red light, Eric said, â??and took a chance.