FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.couriersun.com JANUARY 30, 2014 • THE COURIER SUN 17 HALL OF SHAME Incidents of graffi ti have risen. The Courier invites you, our readers, to submit photos of vandalism — or addresses where you see graffi ti — for our “Hall of Shame.” Conversely, if a home or business has “cleaned up their act,” submit them for induction into our “Hall of Fame.” Send all high resolution JPG images (300 DPI) to [email protected] with a location and a contact number. Otherwise, contact us at 38-15 Bell Boulevard, Bayside, NY 11361. Help us take our borough back from the vandals! BY KATELYN DI SALVO Do you think more should be done to keep students with Yes, I do feel there isn’t enough being done. There isn’t enough funding for schools and I feel there should be longer hours in school, so teachers can help the students even more. Arthur B. Yes, I believe more should be done because it’s too dangerous out there, even for kids without special needs. Caitlin Neil-Karhut Yes, I used to work with kids with special needs and some are not able to fend for themselves, so keeping students safe should be the priority right now. Esther Park Kids with special needs need to be able to be tracked when in school. I think Schumer’s “Avonte’s Law” is a good idea and is necessary. Ken Kupetski I believe it is the school’s responsibility to make sure students are safe, so I feel they need to fi gure out a better and safer plan to keep kids in school when they are supposed to be in school. Maya Schallcross Defi nitely, more needs to be done. What happened to Avonte should never happen again. Kevin Collins special needs safe in school? oped street talk Yes, I feel the more protection the better; the most important thing is that these kids are safe. Juliet Hainline I believe schools aren’t doing enough for kids with special needs. It is always better to have more protection. Julia Vennitti Make Traffi c Safety A Priority BY COUNCILMEMBER COSTA CONSTANTINIDES The 21st Street corridor between Queens Plaza and 20th Avenue has always been notorious for pedestrian fatalities. It serves as a conduit between the Queensboro and Robert F. Kennedy Bridges, resulting in cars, trucks, and other heavy vehicles using the street to move quickly between these two points. 21st Street is also home to major senior and youth developments, such as I.S. 126, Long Island City High School, Bishop Iakovos Senior Housing, Vallone Family Senior Residence, Variety Boys & Girls Club, Queensview and North Queensview. The increase in youth and senior populations, combined with increased commercial and cycling traffi c, brings a need for improvement of traffi c fl ow and an awareness of pedestrian safety. According to data analyzed from the New York State Department of Transportation, New York State Department of Motor Vehicles and the New York Police Department, traffi c on this stretch of 21st Street caused seven deaths and left 102 people with injuries from 2002 to 2011. And these statistics have not improved since then. That data also showed that Queens had the highest incidents of fatalities due to traffi c accidents in the city in 2013. It’s easy to see why these deaths and injuries are occurring. Some intersections along 21st Street have no crosswalks or countdown clocks at all. Many pedestrian crosswalks are bumpy, obscured with gravel or cracked asphalt, or otherwise impossible to cross if you’re in a wheelchair or pushing a stroller. Some crosswalks are impossible to cross because the lights are non-existent or don’t allow for enough time to make it to the other side of the street. This is an issue that plagues our entire city. According to a Daily News analysis of NYPD reports, pedestrian deaths from vehicles, especially the number of children, are increasing and we are on pace to outnumber 2013 deaths in 2014. So far, there have been 11 pedestrian deaths in 2014 across the city. We clearly need a solution. Earlier this month, we held a press conference on 21st Street, calling on the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) for action. State Senator Michael Gianaris, Assemblymember Aravella Simotas, Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer, local advocacy group Transportation Alternatives, Community Board 1, parents from local schools, neighborhood community groups and senior centers, and other local activists joined. They agreed that real change is required to make 21st Street safer for everyone. I therefore ask that the DOT conduct a traffi c study of the 21st Street corridor, with the goal of creating a more safe and accessible street for all. We need calming measures, such as countdown clocks and traffi c lights for pedestrians, as well as well-maintained fl attened crosswalks with no physical impediments for pedestrians with disabilities or children in strollers. Our growth in population and small businesses is a boon to our local economy, but we need to make sure our infrastructure keeps up with increases in traffi c. There is no excuse for us not to reduce the number of pedestrian fatalities by vehicles to zero. Costa Constantinides represents the New York City Council’s 22nd District, which includes his native Astoria along with parts of Long Island City, Woodside, East Elmhurst, and Jackson Heights. He serves as the chair the City Council’s Sub-Committee on Libraries and sits on seven standing committees: Civil Service & Labor, Contracts, Cultural Affairs, Environmental Protection, Oversight & Investigations, Sanitation, and Transportation. 115th Street and 9th Avenue College Point
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