Greenburgh Pedestrian Crosswalk Accident Spurs Police Enforcement
As development across Westchester continues to progress, vehicular traffic has increased and pedestrian safety has come to the forefront in many municipalities.
During the evening of Friday, Oct. 18, a teenager (age 14) and a child (age 11) were hit by a 2006 Hyundai Sonata while walking in a pedestrian crosswalk on Central Park Avenue in Greenburgh. The children were walking in an easterly direction towards the Sacred Heart Church/School and were hit by a vehicle in the left lane driving southbound as they approached the double yellow line dividing the north and south bound lanes of traffic, according to Greenburgh Police Chief Brian Ryan.
The police report indicates the crosswalk was clearly marked and noted that NYS-DOT had recently painted the crosswalk, including the appropriate NYS-DOT signage.
Police say the 28-year-old driver did not slow down or brake prior to impact, but stopped immediately after impact and remained to cooperate fully with police.
In a report to the Greenburgh Town Board, Chief Ryan said he had assigned the Traffic & Safety Unit to photograph the scene, noting distances where the signage for the pedestrian crosswalk becomes visible to drivers both northbound and southbound on Central Park Avenue. Additional photographs and observations of the vicinity on Central Park Avenue/Lawton Avenue were to be undertaken at the approximate time the accident occurred (7:48 p.m.) in order to gain more perspective into the sight distance and posted pedestrian crosswalk signage.
Ryan also said the Traffic & Safety Unit would commence a selective enforcement operation in the vicinity of the four corners, and the East Hartsdale Avenue/Rockledge Road intersection, as well as the Hartsdale Train Station focusing on drivers who “fail to yield to pedestrians” while crossing the street within a pedestrian crosswalk.
“This initiative is funded by NYS Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee, (GTSC), and shall run during the morning and evening rush hours. I have directed the officers to issue traffic summonses for observed violations,” Ryan said in his report.
Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner and members of the Town Board met with the police chief during a work session on Oct. 22, and agreed to work with NYS to address traffic safety at this location.
“The crosswalk on this state road is dangerous. NYS Department of Transportation has already funded a crosswalk upgrade, a pedestrian activated flashing beacon light. But the timeline on the project is unknown,” Feiner said.
In 2013 a similar pedestrian accident at the same crosswalk involving two senior citizens approaching Sacred Heart Church from the same direction as the most recent accident around 5 p.m., resulted in the driver of the vehicle receiving a summons.
