4 THE QUEENS COURIER • JUNE 24, 2021 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
New ramps installed at Kew Gardens Interchange
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced
the completion of two new exit ramps at
the Kew Gardens Interchange that will
enhance safety and reduce congestion at
the infamous bottleneck.
The new ramps were constructed
as part of the state Department of
Transportation’s ongoing $365 million
project to enhance safety at the confl
uence of the Grand Central Parkway,
the Van Wyck Expressway, the Jackie
Robinson Parkway and Utopia Turnpike.
“We are not only rebuilding our infrastructure
across New York, but building
it back better and creating a 21st-century
transportation network that will allow our
economy to fl ourish,” Cuomo said. “Th ese
new ramps, along with other improvements
we are making as part of the Kew
Gardens Interchange project, will enhance
safety and ease travel through one of the
most complex and heavily traveled corridors
in New York City, keeping people
and goods on the move for many years
to come.”
Th e new eastbound Grand Central
Parkway Exit 13W ramp creates a new,
easier to navigate traffi c pattern for
motorists heading to JFK International
Airport and other destinations. Th e new
southbound Van Wyck Expressway Exit 7
ramp provides access to westbound Jackie
Robinson Parkway, westbound Union
Turnpike and Queens Boulevard.
“Congestion has blighted the Kew
Gardens Interchange and caused headaches
for drivers and folks in the surrounding
neighborhoods, so I’m glad to
see signifi cant progress being made at alleviating
that chronic issue while improving
safety,” state Senator Leroy Comrie said.
“My thanks to Governor Cuomo and the
state Department of Transportation for
their continued focus on enhancing the
Kew Gardens Interchange.”
Governor Andrew Cuomo says back-ups in the Kew Gardens Interchange will improve with the completion of two new exit ramps on the thoroughfare.
Th e new Exit 13W ramp removed a notorious
bottleneck that had existed because
motorists on the eastbound Grand Central
Parkway had to access the westbound
Jackie Robinson Parkway via a ramp that
was in close proximity to the ramp connecting
the Grand Central Parkway to JFK
and the southbound Van Wyck.
Under the new traffi c pattern, the Exit
13W ramp has been relocated from the
right side of the parkway to the left and
moved approximately a quarter mile east
of its previous location.
Motorists wanting to access westbound
Jackie Robinson Parkway from eastbound
Grand Central Parkway will now remain
in the left lane as the old Exit 13W ramp
is closed.
Th e relocation of the Exit 13W ramp
and the elimination of a stop sign where
eastbound Grand Central Parkway
merged with westbound Jackie Robinson
QNS fi le photo
Parkway will signifi cantly enhance traffi c
fl ow and reduce congestion, state Senator
Joseph Addabbo Jr. said.
“Th is project will allow motorists, both
local and tourists, to navigate through our
borough easier and with better access to
John F. Kennedy International Airport
and other destinations in Queens,”
Addabbo said.
Construction on the project is expected
to be fully completed next year.
District attorney establishes
new intelligence unit
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz
announced the creation of a new Crime
Strategies and Intelligence Unit to improve
public safety by focusing prosecutorial
resources on proactively reducing and preventing
criminal activity, particularly violent
criminal activities and gun traffi cking.
Katz appointed Shanon LaCorte as the
unit’s director.
By analyzing data and intelligence from
law enforcement and community partners,
CSIU can inform prosecutorial decisions
such as alternative sentencing, and can more
eff ectively focus law enforcement resources
on drivers of violent crime to improve
public safety.
“Th e creation of our Crime Strategies
and Intelligence Unit keeps us on the cutting
edge of modern prosecution in Queens
Count,” Katz said. “Th is unit will enhance
the way we use analytic tools and data science
to identify crime trends and opportunities
to reduce violent crime by rooting
out those individuals most responsible
for driving these off enses. At the same
time, we can ensure that appropriate, nonviolent
off enders are aff orded opportunities
for interventions and/or rehabilitative
services.”
Th e unit will also provide assistance to individual
prosecutions and investigations by supplying
context, evidence and actionable intelligence
across all divisions
within the district attorney’s
offi ce. Prior to leading
the CSIU, Assistant
District Attorney
LaCorte was Special
Counsel at the New
York State Attorney
General’s Statewide
Organized Crime
Task Force.
LaCorte previously
served
in the Attorney
General’s Criminal
Enforcement and
Financial Crimes
Bureau.
Photo by Mark Hallum
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced the creation of a
new intelligence unit to improve public safety.
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