At CB 2 meeting tonight, discussion of safety changes proposed for Times Plaza and Flatbush/Atlantic

Tonight, at a 6 pm meeting of the Community Board 2 Transportation Committee--see poster at right--the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) will discuss a proposal for changes in the design of Times Plaza and safety improvement at the fraught intersection of Flatbush and Atlantic Avenue.

The meeting will be held at the second floor gallery of the YWCA, at 30 Third Avenue, just north of Atlantic Avenue. The DOT's portal for the project is here.

The area under study is part of Mayor de Blasio's Vision Zero initiative to end traffic deaths and injuries. One proposed change, for example, involves a new crosswalk from Flatbush Avenue to the Barclays Center

The changes involve not only access to the arena block, but to the planned--but yet unresolved--major construction at Site 5, part of Pacific Park, and the separate proposed project at 80 Flatbush Avenue.

New pedestrian refuge

As shown in the graphic below, in January 2017, DOT reported installing a rubber pedestrian refuge island at the intersection of Fourth and Atlantic avenues, thus creating a safer and shorter two-part crossing.

According to DOT, "the rubber product is a new tool that allowed DOT to install a pedestrian refuge where concrete is not feasible due to conflicts with subway infrastructure and utilities underneath the roadway."

August 2016 presentation

As described by DOT, and shown in the document below:

On August 3rd, 2016 DOT presented a comprehensive plan and hosted a workshop regarding safety improvements in the area around the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Flatbush Avenue. The presentation included plans to calm traffic, improve mobility and improve the quality of public space in the area. The workshop that followed provided community members the opportunity to work with DOT staff directly to provide comments and propose solutions to the challenges faced in the area.

The changes proposed, at three separate nodes along Flatbush, centered on Schermerhorn Street/Lafayette Avenue, State Street/Hanson Place, and Atlantic/Flatbush/Fourth avenues, include:

• extended sidewalks
• new center medians
• extended neckdowns
• new crosswalks
• a new traffic signal
• ending a turn from westbound Atlantic Avenue to Flatbush Avenue

Times Plaza open space upgrades proposed

Streetsblog reported on that meeting, where " DOT showed plans for five median pedestrian islands and several curb extensions to shorten crossing distances around Flatbush and Atlantic."

The proposals are subject to further feedback and, as construction and funding partners are identified, individual projects will be presented to the community board for approval.

Unmentioned in the presentation is the separate but associated plan, funded by developers of the Atlantic Yards/Pacific Park project, to upgrade the Times Plaza open space, which residents said had to be coupled with street safety improvements.

Atlantic Avenue/Flatbush Avenue Comprehensive Safety Plan Study August 2016 by Norman Oder on Scribd