LI Roads Identified as Most Dangerous in the Region for Pedestrians

LongIsland.com

Hempstead Turnpike tops the list as the most deadly road in the tri-state area for the fifth year in a row.

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A recent report by Tri-State Transportation Campaign reveals statistics of pedestrian fatalities from 2009-2011 for its Most Dangerous Roads for Walking report, and Long Islanders may not be surprised to see that many Nassau and Suffolk County roads top the list.

The report names Hempstead Turnpike in Nassau County as the most dangerous road in the tri-state area with 14 pedestrian deaths in the three years studied. The 16-mile stretch of road has become infamous for being the most deadly road for walking for the fifth year in a row.  

In 2012, the New York State Department of Transportation began addressing the concerns of Nassau commuters and locals alike, and added raised medians and crosswalks, moved bus stops closer to crosswalks, and changed the patterns of traffic signals to slow down traffic.  The results of these changes have not yet been documented.

The most deadly road in Suffolk County is Jericho Turnpike, which comes in third in the tri-state area for the most pedestrian deaths, with 11 deaths from 2009-2011.  The thoroughfare jumped six spots on the list from since last year.

Other Long Island roads that made the list include SR-27 Sunrise Highway in Nassau and SR-110 New York Avenue/Broadhollow Road/Broadway, and SR-27 Sunrise Highway/Montauk Point State Highway/CR-29 in Suffolk County.

“We are saddened that our region continues to be plagued by many dangerous roadways that are unsafe for residents of all ages, customers and workers in our local communities,” said Eric Alexander, executive director of the non-profit community-building program Vision Long Island.  “This report once again points to the need to move quickly to fund complete streets projects and enhance pedestrian safety.”

The Tri-State Transportation Campaign, a nonprofit organization that seeks to promote sustainable practices and encourage commuters to rely less on cars, used data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System to create the report.

In the tri-state area, 1,242 pedestrians were killed between 2009-2011.  Of these deaths, nearly 200 pedestrian deaths happened on Long Island, with 84 in Nassau County, and 110 Suffolk County.

 

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