BROOKLYN COMMUNITY BOARD 6
TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE MEETING
JUNE 21, 2012
ATTENDANCE:
D. ABRAHAM J. ARMER J. COHN
D. DECOSTANZO D. GIULIANO E. MCCLURE
T. MISKEL M. PETTIT
EXCUSED:
W. BLUM L. NAPOLITANO G. REILLY
R. RIGOLLI R. SLOANE J. THOMPSON
ABSENT:
D. GORDON J. HEYER A. MCKNIGHT
M. VERRET
GUESTS:
C. ZINNEL – REP. FOR HON. BRAD LANDER. CITY COUNCIL MEMBER
J. BENSON – REP. FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
I. DUTTON R. MEIZER B. WILSON
B. BYERS
***MINUTES***
The meeting was called to order at 6:40pm.
Joint presentation to and review by the Transportation Committees of Brooklyn Community Boards 6 and 7 on a proposal by the Department of Transportation for various pedestrian safety improvements at the Bartel-Pritchard Square traffic circle.
Randy Wade of the Department of Transportation presented information on a new proposal to improve Bartel-Pritchard Square. Kelly Gimson of DOT’s pedestrian group was project manager and presented.
Community Boards 6 and 7 requested improvements to the circle. Crosswalks are violated, double right turns create danger onto Prospect Park Southwest. Fast Action Toolkit – new signage, signal timings, new crosswalks, new traffic signal DOT also wants to relocate existing B61 shelter. Lanes would be widened to help stay within lane during turns. Painted curb extensions. Net loss of only one parking spot at new crosswalk. Turn lanes will be turn lanes only, not also thruways. Crosswalk distance will be shortened from 50 feet to 30 feet.
Q. Concern on moving bus stop?
A. Traffic volume at that intersection is relatively small and without the rest of the plan cannot occur. Separating lanes also reduces jockeying for position
Q. Any parking loss? A. The bus stop will not be any parking losses. It is purely a swap.
Q. Who is responsible for flowers in circle? A. Parks Department.
Q. Other than paint, what prevents wrong turns? A. Flexible delineators will do it.
Q. Anticipate any spill back on 15th Street? A. Looked at signal timings, giving extra time to Prospect Park West. They will also monitor it after installation.
Park Slope Neighbors hears many concerns about it and appreciates this change.
Q. Thought about overhead signs? A. Yes, there will be terracotta overhead signs.
Q. Crosswalks are all very angled – increases distances. A. Angles are to match existing pedestrian ramps.
Any plan to fix these lanes is commended.
Q. It is continuous movement with signal timings changed? A. Yes. It made for smoother continuous flow.
Q. Countdown clocks? A. Eventually, yes. They are being rolled out slowly.
Q. Twenty five seconds isn’t much for pedestrian phase. A. We will put in a request now for this.
Q. Similar problems in other circles? A. This is smaller than most other circles and has its own unique problems.
Q. Any fatalities? A. No – but many complaints. It led to looking at the whole circle.
Q. Pedestrian controlled signals? A. It would harm traffic flow and they often need to be repaired. There’s a long backlog to fix existing ones.
Commendation of plan – it will help everyone. But question on bike lane.
A. Bike lane presentation will happen next.
Another commendation for trying new plan.
Q. Speed bump on 15th Street? A. Can’t do it from 8th Avenue to the circle because of the bus. Perhaps from 7th Avenue to 8th Avenue.
Q. Signage question – any way to tell riders that the bus stop moved? A. We will work with Transit to address.
Q. Traffic calming on 15th Street is needed. A. Yes, some will be slowed by new signage.
Q. Can we see animation of signaling? A. All signals for crosswalks are “Barnes Dances”- safe passage for pedestrian.
Q. Is there a timeline? A. We want feedback now. In all likelihood it will be for 2013. A motion of approval is still requested now.
There being only 8 committee members attending. There was no quorum.
Recommendation: Marilyn Pettit made a motion to approve the changes DOT presented to the committee regarding safety improvements at Bartel-Pritchard Square traffic circle. Jerry Armer seconded the recommendation.
MOTION APPROVED: UNANIMOUSLY
Joint presentation to and review by the Transportation Committees of Brooklyn Community Boards 6 and 7 on a proposal by the Department of Transportation to install an eastbound bicycle lane along 14th Street between Prospect Park West and 3rd Avenue and a westbound bicycle lane along 15th Street between Bartel-Pritchard Square and 3rd Avenue.
Preston Johnson, Project Manager in bike programs presented. Council Member Brad Lander presented the idea of a 15th Street greenway in 2010. It offers connections to recently installed PPW protected path. The Armory YMCA opened in 2010 drives the demand for more bicycle trips.
Community requested improvements: Painted sidewalk extensions Install high visibility crosswalks Install and block sidewalk extension (the YMCA has agreed to take care of plants, clear snow and sweep when needed.
Proposed facilities: Install bicycle lane on 15th Street. It is overly wide and leads to erratic driving Install shared lane bicycle facilities on 14th Street.
Q. How is street cleaning handled with typical courtesy of double parking on street closing days? A. The ticketing, or lack thereof, is the same as it is right now.
Q. Which side is bike lane on 15th Street? A. It will be on the left to avoid conflicts with buses.
Q. Great addition to bike network. Did you consider class one protected bike lane? Isn’t 10 foot parking wide? A. Didn’t want to create too wide a space. It becomes another lane with same problems. For Class one, amount of intersections is too problematic.
Q. How many spaces in front of the YMCA? A. Probably 2 spaces for cars, parking for many bicycles.
Q. Uphill makes biking rough. Can signage be added to minimize aggressive driving to pass bikes? A. Yes, we’ll look into.
Q. Some concerns if it’s like the situation at PPSW circle. Concerned about potential future loss to bus on 15th Street? A. Concerned about safety of all users.
Jerry Armer made a recommendation of approval of DOT’s presentation for bicycle lanes on 14th and 15th Streets as well as a request that on-street bicycle parking in front of the Armory YMCA takes a full two spots. Doug Giuliano seconded.
MOTION APPROVED: UNANIMOUSLY
Presentation and discussion with representatives for the Department of Transportation on various traffic safety measures being pursued by the department in the Hicks Street corridor as a follow-up to the BQE Trench Enhancement Study.
Josh Brown of the DOT’s Traffic Operations made the presentation for various safety improvements in the Hicks Street corridor as a follow-up to the BQE Trench Enhancement Study. 5 pedestrian crossings and 4 vehicle crossings High traffic volumes especially when BQE is backed up – 1000 vehicles per hour. This proposal complements improvements already underway on Hicks Street and Atlantic Avenue. During rush hour with no parking, it has a wide open feel that encourages speeding. DOT toolkit can be used – signs, marketing, paint. Any time between 5am and 8pm you’re seeing 200 vehicles per 15 minutes, so 2 lanes are needed. However – the third lane is not needed.
DOT recommendation: Eliminate rush hour lane and create full time parking lane with bump outs at corner for safer crosswalks.
Remove rush hour regulations. Physically narrowing the lanes. Creating more parking availability with just a few spots reserved for loading/unloading.
Q. Jerry Armer thanked DOT for the idea. Would like to see temporary bump-outs made permanent eventually? Would like to see countdown timers added though.
Q. Good plan but could go better. Push to expand the highway ride visibility. It has difficult visibility, often times makes it worse. A second comment agreed with poor sightlines.
Q. Cars are flying on Congress Street. It’s uncontrolled.
Recommendation: Jerry Armer recommends approval of DOT’s proposal to improve safety on Hicks Street by removing third lane of parking on the condition countdown timers are installed at each pedestrian crossing and DOT report back with an update on the possibility to include extra width for pedestrian visibility on the BQE side of the street. Come back to present. Seconded by Eric McClure.
MOTION APPROVED: UNANIMOUSLY
Meeting was adjourned at 9PM.
Minutes submitted by Dave Paco Abraham