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Community Corner

Locals Say DeKalb and Waverly is a Traffic Nightmare

Cyclist, pedestrians and motorists are all seen as vulnerable on the sketchy block.

Residents don’t see eye to eye when it comes to the bike lane on the small block of DeKalb Avenue between Waverly and Washington avenues, but most of them can agree on one thing: it is unsafe for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists alike. 

The block — which has no stoplight — has been the subject of heated debate as of late among locals. Cars tend to speed down DeKalb Avenue, and many other drivers come careening off of Washington Avenue, another heavily trafficked thoroughfare. Throw into the mix the numerous cyclists taking advantage of the bike lane — many coming from the nearby Pratt Institute and others on their way Downtown — and residents see a disaster waiting to happen.

“The city is paying millions of dollars to put in bike lanes without regulating them enough, it’s a free for all!” said homeowner Anthony Cerullo, who added that bikers consistently go the wrong way down the one-way street.

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Some neighbors insist that the bike lane, in place since 2008, is causing the problem. But others maintain that motorists who speed through the small street for fear that they might get caught in traffic are a greater cause for concern.

“People keep saying it’s the bike lanes, but it’s people driving too fast,” said Esther Kirshenbaum. “We shouldn’t be catering to people’s speeding needs.”

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A recent post on The New York Times by a local resident, Catherine Kunicki, said that the block had become more dangerous because of the ever-growing traffic problem in Downtown Brooklyn.

“The bike lane means there’s one less lane for driving or parking and there’s so much congestion now,” Kunicki said. “There are kids walking all over this neighborhood and I see people idly standing at the corner almost get clipped all the time.”

Statistics show that the block has been the site of many accidents. From 1995  to 2005, 16 pedestrians have been hit by cars, along with four cyclists, according to Crashstat.org. One block away on Clinton Avenue a pedestrian was killed in 2001.

 A cyclist said that drivers are usually at the root of the problem.

 “When there’s a bike lane you expect it to be reliable,” said Nicholas Kuhn who lives in Fort Greene. “But cars use it to pass people and double-park in it. I know a guy who got into an accident in the lane and is fighting for his life.”

Efforts have been made to make the block safer. Cops have of traffic violations by cyclists. No Standing signs near the corner at Waverly Avenue are meant to keep cars from parking too close to the corner, according to Kunicki. She said that before the signs were in place, parked cars blocked right turning drivers’ view of oncoming traffic down DeKalb Avenue.

Speed bumps, Kunicki said, are impractical as the block is part of an emergency vehicle route.  But she insists that something must be done to deter motorists from speeding, often up to 50 miles per hour, down the residential block.

“The bike lane causes congestion and people get frustrated and pass on the right,” Kunicki said. “My neighbor has had her car totaled twice on the block and her partner was hit while walking!”

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