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Bayside school demands safer streets
PS 376 students & parents push for implementation of signal or crosswalk near school
Vol. 28 No. 6 52 total pages
BY JENNA BAGCAL
Parents whose children are
enrolled at PS 376 in Bayside
are concerned about traffic
safety around the school.
PTA co-president Carin
Bail-Rosenfeld presented
these concerns at the Bayside
Hills Civic Association
(BHCA) meeting on Jan. 29,
citing a lack of a safety signal
or crosswalk on 48th Avenue
and 211th Street where cars
and city buses frequently
zoom past.
“I know that the location is
a difficult location in terms of
traffic because it is a roadway
where public transportation
runs — the public buses,”
said Bail-Rosenfeld. “There
is no safety signal in
between Bell Boulevard and
Oceania Street and it’s a
straight run.”
She went on to say that
there are times when the buses
are not following the proper
protocol by “going as high as
50 miles an hour” and cars
go past parked yellow school
buses with their stop signs
out. A “concerned parent”
on the BHCA Facebook page
raised similar concerns about
the school at 210-21 48th Ave.
“After petitions and much
correspondence with Paul
Vallone, Community Board
11 and Andrew Arcese of
Nicole Garcia’s office, there
is still no crosswalk,” said the
parent. “The bus stop needs to
be moved to its original site
(same block but on the 210th
side) so the crossing guard can
cross the children and their
parents safely.”
TimesLedger reported on
the city’s plans to build PS
376 back in 2015. Two years
prior, residents in the area
protested the school due to the
potential impact on parking
and “dangerous traffic
problems” for the students.
The school officially opened in
September 2017 and currently
teaches students in Pre-K,
kindergarten and first grade.
In 2017, City Councilman
Paul Vallone collaborated
with PS 376 Principal Clara
Kang and DOT to install
signage that brought down the
speed limit from 25 to 20 miles
per hour during school hours.
But parents think that more
needs to be done.
Vallone told TimesLedger
that he had been advocating
for “additional traffic calming
measures and devices” at
the school site even before it
opened. The councilman said
that his office has written
“multiple letters” and walked
through the site with DOT.
“As the school’s enrollment
continues to grow in
subsequent years, the traffic
volume and concerns will also
increase. It’s disappointing
that our previous request for
safety changes was denied,”
said Vallone. “We have once
WORKING FOR CHANGE
again asked the DOT to
reevaluate this issue and
requested the addition of a
traffic signal at 48th Avenue
and 211th Street, as well
as the addition of flashing
lights to alert drivers to the
existing slow zone around the
school. The school has also
collected over 200 petition
signatures supporting these
safety improvements. School
safety is always a priority and
I will continue advocating for
a favorable resolution for the
P.S. 376Q community.”
Andrew Arcese,
a Department of
Transportation (DOT)
representative for the Queens
Borough Commissioner’s
office explained that when
DOT conduct studies for
signals or all-way stop signs,
they follow federal guidelines
listed in the Manual of
Uniform Traffic Control
Devices (MUTCD).
“They basically tell us
when a signal or an all-way
stop is warranted,” said
Arcese who added that there
are nine different criteria
that can trigger a warrant.
Bail-Rosenfeld argued
that the location of the school
met two of the criteria, but
Arcese countered that the
criteria are also largely
based on the volume of
vehicles and pedestrians
that DOT observes.
Residents also raised
concerns about the speeding
buses that travel routes near
the school and asked if DOT
would consider installing
a speed bump in the area.
Prior to 2019, Arcese said
that DOT’s policy was to not
install speed reducers, such
as speed bumps, in areas
where heavy vehicles like
buses or trucks pass.
Josiah Dunn and Osamuyimen Omorogbe, students at John Adams High School, shared their
experiences from their time abroad in Japan and Poland, where they studied and participated in
climate change activities and events. See story on Page 2. Courtesy of Global Kids
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