Southold officials say they were unaware of state plans for a new traffic light

Southold officials said they were unaware of — and not happy with — New York State transportation officials' plan to install a traffic light at a busy town intersection.

Deputy Town Supervisor William Ruland told the Southold Town Board at a work session last Tuesday that Southold's Transportation Commission was not told of the New York State Department of Transportation’s project at the intersection of Route 25 and Oaklawn Avenue near the entrance to Southold Junior/Senior High School.

A letter dated Nov. 5 to the board from Southold transportation commission chairman Neboysha R. Brasich, stated the town had “never been informed of this project nor have we had the opportunity to discuss this proposed installation.” 

Brasich said in the letter the commission recommended the town board ask the state agency to cancel the installation.

Ruland said Southold Supervisor Scott Russell, who was out of town, was “shocked” to learn of the plan. Town officials should have been consulted, Ruland said.

The transportation commission opposes the traffic light because a traffic control officer was already stationed at the intersection, and a signal light would back up traffic during the off-hours, Brasich said in the letter. “We believe that this extreme traffic control measure running 24/7 would be counterproductive for our local community,” he wrote.

DOT spokesman Stephen Canzoneri said in a statement Friday the signal’s location was selected and supported through a traffic analysis. The agency had “reached out to officials in Southold to better understand their concerns,” Canzoneri said.

The Suffolk County School Traffic Safety Commission had previously recommended placing a traffic signal at the intersection. In a July 25 letter to Suffolk County Legis. Sarah Anker (D-Mount Sinai), the commission's chairwoman, DOT Region 10 regional director Joseph Brown wrote that the agency determined a light would be "appropriate." Region 10 covers Long Island.

The traffic signal would be a standard red-yellow-green light with a westbound left-turn arrow, according to Brown's letter.

The commission put the intersection on a countywide list of areas of safety concern in its September 2016 report. “As per the school, a requested traffic light would ease access all day,” the report stated.