Nassau and Suffolk Counties have the worst pedestrian safety records among suburban counties in NY State (MTR #313). A proposed project to slow traffic and boost pedestrian and bicyclist safety near the LIRR station in Roslyn Harbor, on Nassau County’s north shore, shows the need and the potential for the traffic calming grant program.

Roslyn Harbor’s preliminary design idea calls for traffic calming on a one-mile stretch of Bryant Avenue between the train station and a Long Island Bus stop. According to residents, the strip, whose speed limit is nominally 30 mph, is used as a raceway at night and a cut-through route during the day.

The Village proposes to reduce confusion and conflict at a curve near the train station entrance, and to accommodate walkers and cyclists with village-style brick sidewalks and crosswalks, and bike lanes.Speeding and through traffic will be curtailed with a raised intersection, rumble strips, neckdowns, chicanes, and landscaped turn islands at the train station.The Village views the project as a precursor to more village-wide efforts to calm traffic and promote pedestrian and bicyclists safety.

The project is budgeted at $273,853, with 90% provided by NYSDOT via the federal “Hazard Elimination” program.According to DOT’s Long Island office, the traffic calming program is expected to continue for the next few years at $2.7 million.We expect that interest and demand for the funding will grow (DOT funded fewer than half of the proposals it received in the first round), and urge Commissioner Boardman to consider increasing resources available through the program.