A plan to put Classon Avenue on a safety-enhancing road diet won unanimous approval from Brooklyn's Community Board 8 last night. CB 8 was the fourth and final community board to vote on the proposal, according to the board. Each CB supported the plan.
Under the proposal from NYC DOT [PDF], the north-south corridor will be narrowed from two lanes to one in most locations. Where traffic is heavy or DOT thinks a turning lane is necessary, as at Eastern Parkway and Atlantic Avenue, Classon will remain two lanes wide.
The roadway space previously used for the second travel lane will be redistributed to widen the parking lanes on either side of the street.
DOT's traffic calming plan stems from a request by City Council Member Letitia James, as well as community requests for speed bumps and other safety features.
Right now, Classon is more dangerous than three-quarters of all Brooklyn corridors, in terms of severity-weighted crashes. On average, 35 pedestrians, cyclists and motor vehicle occupants are injured on every mile of the road every year. In November, a driver killed a man walking across Classon at Fulton Street.
The road will be restriped early this year, according to DOT.
