Will the New Pedestrian Islands on PPW Make it Safer to Cross the Street?

Next Monday, the Department of Transportation will begin to to help make crossing two lanes of vehicular traffic and two lanes of bicycle traffic on Prospect Park West easier.

Craig Hammerman, the district manager of Community Board 6 said that the new additions are a “necessary component of a plan” that would help “improve pedestrian safety further.”

The islands will not change the street’s or the bike lane’s configuration, but rather take pedestrian areas that already exist and raise them, add some new trees and relocate the pedestrian crossing signals onto the islands themselves. This is meant to enhance pedestrian safety and improve pedestrian crossings by elevating them—giving people better sightlines in order to see car and bike traffic.

Also, cars will not be able to park in pedestrian areas anymore, so they will not obscure people’s vision while trying to get to or leave the park.

The islands will be placed at Carroll Street, Garfield Place, First Street, Third Street, Fifth Street, Seventh Street, Ninth Street, Eleventh Street and Fourteenth Street.

What do you think? Will crossing Prospect Park West be easy to cross as a pedestrian? Make sure to vote in the poll below and if you have any suggestions write them in the comments section.