The risky rhythms of Route 110

BY LUIS PEREZ | luis.perez@newsday.com

August 5, 2007

For some motorists, a red light means go.

At a certain hour, say 4:30 p.m. or so on a weekday, Pat Ferguson watches the southbound traffic light at Route 110 and Main Street from within the safety of the North Amityville custom window shop she runs with her husband, Bob.

The flash of red at the southbound traffic light at Route 110 and Main Street means there will be a moment of stillness just long enough for Ferguson and her Ford Edge sport utility vehicle to peel away.

If this green light of sorts is missed, a crush of southbound traffic will fill three narrow lanes in front of Ferguson's shop, often locking her into a front-seat view of the massive bee-line for the Southern State Parkway, just 50 yards away.

"Nobody lets you in," said Ferguson.

Such are the jagged rhythms of a tiny but hectic sliver of Route 110 that has been rated by the state Department of Transportation as having the worst accident rating of all state roads on Long Island.

At this three-tenths of a mile stretch, there were 68 accidents -- 49 involving injuries and two ending in fatalities -- during the two-year survey period ending in 2005, according the state records analysis, making it the fourth worst location on Long Island's state roads.

The Fergusons and their neighbors refer to 110 as a "speedway." The posted limit along that stretch of road is 40 mph, but most drivers are doing 60, they say.

The two fatalities that have occurred at the intersection hint at the problem.

In November 2005, a southbound 1989 Toyota ran through a red light while turning late at the intersection and was struck by 1984 Oldsmobile headed north, Suffolk police said.

Marina-Carman Hernandez, 23, of North Amityville, was killed in that collision, and another woman, Brunilda DeAdames, 60, of Copiague, was seriously injured.

A year earlier, in September 2004, a Farmingdale man, Juan Sanchez, 51, was struck by a 2003 Nissan sport utility vehicle and killed while crossing east to west at the intersection. The driver, who was not charged, said at the time that Sanchez appeared suddenly and that he tried to stop the vehicle.

Ferguson and her husband said they were not aware of the intersection's high rate of accidents, but were not surprised.

"There's always a fender-bender right in front of me," Ferguson said. "In the summer, we can't even leave our windows open because it's so loud, between the screeching of brakes and the honking of horns."

The Fergusons' shop, Creative Windows, shares the west side of the road with a transmission mechanic, two private homes, a hardware store and a filling station. They dread the 10-foot-wide parking lane in front of their store as much as they rely on it. They tell their customers to come early, and be careful.

Speeding isn't the only problem. Locals blame slow-pokes -- perhaps confused that this stretch of 110 is named Broadway on the western side, Broadhollow Road on the east -- for causing some accidents. Meanwhile, the big-box stores keep coming to the bustling business corridor north of Main Street -- Wal-Mart recently became a neighbor -- adding to what the Fergusons fear will be further congestion.

Since the segment topped the DOT's list, the department has upgraded the traffic signals and crosswalks in the area and repainted all of the road markings. The segment also will be paved soon.