Letter to the Villager #2

There is another story in this weeks edition of The Villager which deals with the proposal of changing Avenue B in the East Village to a One-Way Street.

Last Tuesday, I posted on the crackdown of excessive nightlife and traffic along Avenue B. The article presented support for the suggestion of changing the narrowest of the Alphabets to a northbound one-way street.

A meeting at Community Board 3 held on Wednesday had many neighborhood residents opposed to such a change fearing a one-way street would make the strip feel less of a neighborhood.

Residents said that changing two-way Avenue B to one-way would make the area seem less like a neighborhood; the proposal sparked fears of traffic speeding up and accompanying concern about the impact this would have on the at least four schools that line the avenue.

I wish I could attend the meeting on December 20, but I'll be at a County function that evening and won't be able to present a plan I thought of which could reduce traffic build up.

The PetersonforNYC Proposal
Part of the problem is congestion forming at certain intersections along Avenue B from East Houston Strett to East 14th Street. I propose installing No Left Turn signs at designated points along Avenue B.

If a car is heading northbound along Avenue B, they will not be able to make a Left Turn at E. 3rd St, E 7th St and E. 13th St between the hours of 11 PM to 5 AM.

If a car is heading southbound along Avenue B, they will not be able to make a Left Turn at E. 12th, E. 6th St and E. 4th St between the hours of 11 PM to 5 AM.

Preventing left turns at points along the strip should clear the road from congestion at street crossings that tend to get a little crowded during the evening. It will force automobiles to drive to Avenue A or Avenue C, which are wider and can handle the increase of car traffic.

Of course, you do not want to prevent left turns at every crossing, because that would simply create issues on other avenues. I think a test program should be tried with No Left Turn signs and a study on how it helps with late night traffic. If it keeps traffic flowing and reducing noise pollution, it should be perminently enacted.