Community watchdog: Fewer lanes, more traffic

I travel Newbridge Road every day south of Hempstead Turnpike. Last summer, the two lanes each way on Newbridge Road became one lane each way. This was a bad idea. It makes getting out of side streets difficult because the lines of traffic are endless during rush hours, and it's causing dangerous traffic situations, such as tailgating and improper use of the turning lanes. Please help correct this poor lane-usage decision and bring back the original four-lane road before serious accidents occur.

-Lori Hoffman, East Meadow

Bottom line, Mrs. Hoffman, the road's staying the way it is. Here's what state Department of Transportation spokeswoman Eileen Peters wrote in an e-mail:

"As the result of a comprehensive investigation and in response to elected officials' and community safety concerns, in August 2010 the NYS Department of Transportation reconfigured approximately one mile of NY Route 106/Newbridge Road travel lanes between NY Route 24/Hempstead Turnpike and North Jerusalem Road . . . to curtail speeding and reduce crashes."

That was the DOT's reasoning behind the change, which in DOT jargon is called a "traffic calming design," turning four lanes into one lane in each direction, with a center lane for left turns. Peters wrote: "After several initial complaints mostly from aggressive drivers who could no longer pass motorists driving at the speed limit, it appears motorists have adjusted . . . and it is operating as intended." We don't know how the DOT knows the complaints came from "mostly aggressive drivers . . . " but that's another issue.

If readers need help navigating the new configuration, Peters offered this: "The continuous center turn lane should actually ease left turn movements from side roads since it now provides a 'halfway' area to wait for a gap in traffic and safely enter the travel lane. This is an exclusive left turn lane that can be entered and exited at any point to safely wait for a left turn opportunity. It is illegal to use it as a travel or passing lane."

For readers who have asked about the outcome of a Huntington issue where neighbors have been feuding for years over a collapsed retaining wall, and its ugly concrete replacement that town inspectors found dangerous, here's the latest: It's still not done.

We first wrote about Neslyn and Rebecca D'Souza's problem in July 2009. They had noticed for years that their neighbor's retaining wall was rotting. In 2008 it began to collapse into their yard and Town of Huntington inspectors warned the D'Souzas to keep their children, Nicholas and Grace, away from the area. So the family hasn't been able to use their backyard for nearly four years.

Even with the town on their side, the D'Souzas have been frustrated by delays in getting the issue resolved. Third District Court Judge C. Stephen Hackeling has granted postponements and deadline extensions to repair the wall, with the neighbor arguing, among other things, that he doesn't have the money. Eventually, the neighbor had a concrete wall installed, but town inspectors said it wasn't built to code. The neighbor argued in court that it was safe. That meant a third party had to be consulted. The town hired an engineering firm that backed the town's assessment: The wall wasn't safe.

In late November, the neighbor pleaded guilty to maintaining a retaining wall without a certificate of occupancy and was fined $1,500 by Hackeling, town spokesman A.J. Carter said. He agreed to fix the retaining wall, with the engineering firm checking the work. The neighbor was given a Jan. 5 deadline.

However, Carter said, "Almost immediately, the weather turned very cold, very quickly, which made it impossible to pour concrete, which is the key to shoring up this wall."

So the neighbor gets more time. The town says the work now should be done within a reasonable time after the cold thaw. If not, Carter said, the neighbor can be cited for violation of the judge's conditional discharge and the town can ask for additional fines. Stay tuned.

Sometimes, all you have to do is ask. Again.

In November, Dina Clifford of Franklin Square complained to us that the intersection of Floral Park Road and Sunny Lane needed a stop sign to slow speeders. She feared the mix of traffic and students walking to and from H. Frank Carey High School and Washington Street Elementary School was an accident in the making.

After we called the Town of Hempstead, workers from the Traffic Control Division - for the fifth time since 2003 - investigated the intersection and consulted with the Fifth Precinct.

This time, there was a different conclusion: A stop sign will be installed when weather permits, within a few months. "One of the deciding factors [for the approval] was the intersection's proximity to a local school," town spokesman Michael Deery said.

Problems with traffic signs on town roads? Call the highway department, 516-489-5000.

- Michael R. Ebert