In the wake of a recent traffic fatality on Covert Avenue, the Nassau County Department of Public Works is seeking to implement a $250,000 project to improve traffic safety on the roadway.
“The project has been progressing for some time and is a high priority for the county. Currently we are conducting topography and geometry surveys to determine constructability of sidewalk extensions and are aiming for a quick resolution,” Nassau County DPW spokesman Michael Martino said in a statement on Tuesday.
Pierre Antoine, 55, was killed late on the night of Aug. 19 when police said the 2012 Ford Fusion he was driving was struck by a 2003 Toyota Camry driven by 17-year-old Deepak Kumar of 1410 South Park Place in New Hyde Park. Antoine was driving north on Covert Avenue with his wife and six-year-old daughter in the car when the car Kumar was driving westbound on Second Avenue struck Antoine’s car, police said. Antoine’s wife, who was found unconscious, and their daughter, who suffered a fractured leg, were transported to an area hospital for treatment.
Kumar was arrested and later charged with vehicular manslaughter 2nd degree and driving while impaired by drugs.
New Hyde Park Deputy Mayor Lawrence Montreuil said the changes the DPW plans to make – including sidewalk “bulbouts” to narrow the road – couldn’t come soon enough to suit him.
“It’s really a county initiative that we certainly encourage them to do as soon as possible. And we would welcome them accelerating the improvements to Covert Avenue,” Montreuil said on Tuesday.
At a July 15 New Hyde Park village board meeting, Montreuil said, he approached Nassau County Legislator Richard Nicolello (R-New Hyde Park) about doing something to modify traffic flow along Covert.
He said Nicolello recently asked him whether the proposed county improvements might have prevented the Aug. 19 accident. Montreuil said he was unable to offer an opinion.
Nicolello said the county DPW has a sense of urgency about the project.
“We’ve been pushing the project all along,” Nicolello said. “It’s not a piecemeal solution. They’re trying to improve safety along a long stretch of the road.”
In a presentation at the July meeting, Aryeh Lemberger, unit head of traffic engineering for the county DPW, said the county planned to conduct a traffic study, make changes to the road and erect signs to slow traffic on Covert Avenue.
He said the county DPW might also construct curb extensions, or “bulbouts,” to reduce the width of the road on Covert between 5th and 6th Avenues south of the Long Island Rail Road tracks and slow traffic down.
“We like to channelize people a little more to get people to slow down,” Lemberger said. “It will also shorten the distance for people who want to cross the street.”
Lemberger said the county is considering the project in response to complaints from New Hyde Park village officials, residents and officials from several schools along Covert Avenue.
New Hyde Park residents who crowded the meeting room to hear the presentation in July expressed concerns about cars speeding along Covert Avenue.
One resident said Covert Avenue is especially hazardous at night, calling it a “raceway.”
“People speed on that road all night long,” the resident said. He suggested a greater police presence on Covert to deter speeding motorists.
Some residents at the July meeting said they want to see a traffic light installed at the intersection of Covert Avenue and Sixth Avenue.
Lemberger said the county is reluctant to erect additional traffic signals because more signals often cause more accidents as motorists try to “beat” red lights. He said the auto accident rate along Covert doesn’t meet the current criteria for adding a traffic signal at the intersection with 5th or 6th avenues.
Montreuil said he is aware that some village residents consider the county’s idea to narrow the roadway a “stop-gap” measure. But, he said, he views the installation of another traffic signal on Covert Avenue as “a sort of a last resort.”
He said he agreed with the changes Lemberger presented at the July meeting, but said he hadn’t heard how the DPW might modify its plans based on feedback from residents.
“I think the recommendations that were proposed were good and I hope to see them soon,” Montreuil said.
