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Traffic Light Installed at Intersection Where Man Died Last March

By Serena Dai | January 27, 2015 4:49pm
  A traffic light was installed at Manhattan Avenue and Green Street in Brooklyn after a motorcyclist died in a crash last March.
Traffic Light Installed at Manhattan Ave. and Green St.
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GREENPOINT — A traffic light has been installed at the intersection where a 47-year-old motorcyclist died in a crash last March after locals complained about the dangerous crossing.

The light — which the Department of Transportation said will be activated this week — was installed last week at Green Street and Manhattan Avenue where Jorge Rios, a mechanic at Java Car Service, died after he plowed his friend's 2001 Suzuki motorcyle into the side of a Lexus sedan.

After Rios's death, Councilman Stephen Levin requested that the DOT study the intersection for a traffic light.

The DOT said it completed a study of the intersection in September looking at vehicle and pedestrian volume, vehicle speed, visibilty and signal spacing.

There have been 10 crashes at the intersection since Jan. 27, 2013, the DOT said.

Levin, who lives on Green Street, said many locals have complained about the crossing.

With a bus route, cars and pedestrians from the G train, Manhattan Avenue — which is particularly wide at the intersection — can be "treacherous," he said.

"It’s the confluence of all that type of traffic," Levin said. "It’s the type of intersection that’s probably too busy to not have a light."

Locals had complained about wanting a light at the intersection for some time, especially after Rios's death, they said.

Cars often drag race down Manhattan Avenue toward Queens, rushing forward if they can see that a light a few blocks away is green, said Melissa Zola, who works at local salon Hair.

She's pleased that a light has been installed at the intersection, where accidents are not uncommon, she said.

"It doesn’t take very long to speed," she said. "We definitely need it."