State DOT Approves Safety Measures at Ocean Parkway and Church Avenue

On the heels of a community campaign, the New York State Department of Transportation has greenlighted safety improvements for the corner of Ocean Parkway and Church Avenue, where a 73-year-old woman was struck and killed by a semi truck in June. The community voted to allocate $200,000 to safety upgrades at the intersection in last year’s Participatory Budgeting process and, led by City Council Member Brad Lander, petitioned the DOT for a pedestrian safety island and to repair damaged sidewalks and crosswalks on the six-lane road. Now the DOT has signed off on several new safety measures, which will include a pedestrian island with new signals and protective barriers, high-visiblity crosswalk markings, speed limit signs on Ocean Parkway and “Traffic Signal Ahead” signs along Prospect Expressway, according to an email blast from Lander.

Construction could start as soon as this fall at the intersection, which is considered one of the most dangerous in Brooklyn. Six pedestrians were killed on Ocean Parkway between 2009 and 2011 — more than any other road in the borough, according to the Tri-State Transportation Campaign’s “Most Dangerous Roads for Walking” report.

Closing Bell: Petition for Safety on Ocean Parkway [Brownstoner]
Photo via Google Maps