QUEENS — The city hopes crossing the street near the busy Rego Center Mall will now be safer with the addition of a new crosswalk in front of the complex.
On Saturday, the Department of Transportation officially unveiled the new crosswalk in front of the mall’s entrance on 97th Street, between the Horace Harding Expressway and 62nd Drive. Previously, pedestrians crossed the street constantly though there was no designated place for them to do so, creating a major safety concern, officials said.
While no fatalities have been reported there since 2010 to date, seven people have been severely injured at the location from 2010 to 2014, the latest injury data available, according to the agency.
The new mid-block crossing features ADA pedestrian ramps, warning signs for drivers and concrete curb extensions, which seek to shorten the crossing distance and to prevent double parking, according to the DOT.
Brian Zumhagen, a spokesman for the agency, said that the DOT installed the enhanced crossing near the mall "because pedestrians were showing a strong desire to cross at this location, with 60-70 people crossing in the peak hours."
Local Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz said that the new crossing is “something that my community and I have wanted installed for years.”
“[It] will not only add convenience for shoppers, but, more importantly, safety as well," she noted.
But Tim Fredrick, a writer and teacher who lives across the street from the mall, said that while the new crosswalk is a great idea, it does not solve another safety matter in the area: drivers double parking on the block, “which in some ways is a more pressing issue for those of us who live there,” he said.
Cars often double-park in front of the mall. (DNAinfo/Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska)
He also said that — despite attempts by the 112th Precinct to address the issue — motorists continue to congest the area on both sides of the street, sometimes even using the new crosswalk “as a loading dock of sorts, completely blocking it for pedestrians."
