“Thanks for continuing to bring to light RIOC’s mismanagement,” a reader wrote. This time, it’s about the notorious string of carelessly guarded crosswalks.
“One big issue is lack of enforcement of the law about stop signs. As I was in the crosswalk on Main Street today, a car rolled through. I rapped on the window. The driver stopped, got out and pushed me before running back into his car, perhaps fearing I might charge assault. This is a major fail on the part of Public Safety. Violators should be stopped and issued tickets.”
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
About Main Street’s Notorious Crosswalks
Many residents, along with me, can commiserate. Although RIOC and especially its Public Safety Department will never admit it, a significant number of residents, especially frail and elderly, no longer feel safe crossing Main Street. That keeps them indoors, their concerns largely ignored.
Countless efforts at getting Public Safety to enforce traffic laws have always fallen on deaf ears. Even after several people were struck by cars in crosswalks, PSD simply blew them off. Executive management nodded approval, complimenting it with lip service.
Here’s one story I will never forget.
My friend Tony had a major stroke, deeply incapacitating this energetic professional in his late 40s. He spent years in rehab, finally getting to a point where he could stand again and walk away from his wheelchair. But then, Tony was struck by a car on Main Street and is now permanently in his chair, unable to care for himself. We don’t need more stories like that.
Experiencing Main Street Firsthand
My own experiences are relatively small compared to Tony’s, but here are my misadventures on Main Street. The most recent was just yesterday. Many others have had similar.
I took the above photo immediately after being nearly hit by another truck rolling through the hard-to-see crosswalk. What you can’t see is a PSD officer idling on a curb about 50 feet beyond the double-parked truck. It’s the same location where our reader nearly got hit and was assaulted earlier today.
The officer was not ticketing the truck nor was he guarding the hazard it created. This is typical PSD behavior, casual and careless. This happens all the time. Why can’t management make it better, safer?
PSD Negligence Close Up
Careless drivers missing stop signs and crosswalks is one thing, but what about when a public safety officer is right there… and does nothing?
The first time for me was a dark winter evening. As I crossed Main Street, a car drove right by me without looking or stopping. When I yelled, the driver stopped as a PSD officer appeared out of the shadows.
Caught, the driver quickly apologized – to the officer, who then let him go without a ticket. What message are we sending here?
Then, just a week ago, I was crossing the same place in broad daylight. A PSD patrol car saw me and stopped, but on the other side, a driver rolled right through. When I pointed it out to the public safety officer in his car, he blasted his siren once.
The violator stopped but was immediately allowed to move on without getting ticketed. The PSO just yelled at him. Hell, I can do that much.
Again, what’s the message here?
What’s it gonna take? A serious injury? A death? What, if anything, will get Public Safety off its collective behind?
Finally, About RIOC, Public Safety on the Crosswalks
At over $4 million in annual salaries and benefits alone, Public Safety is RIOC’s most expensive department, but given the negligence, the unwillingness to enforce, why?
After our reader quoted above sent an email of protest to RIOC’s interim management, he was told that “PSD claims they issued two summons this morning.” Not to get too technical, but that’s peanuts.
Given the state of affairs on Main Street, you could give four in ten minutes at any one of the crosswalks, but that never happens. What happens daily is unspoken permission for car drivers, e-bikers and trucks to do as they like with little risk of interference by PSD.
After just missing being hit by the truck yesterday morning – with an officer idling nearby – I kept walking south past Blackwell House. As I passed the circle, a truck made a legal U-Turn but then drove without pause straight through the stop sign/crosswalk ahead.
Here’s the thing. A marked PSD car was right there at the opposite stop sign, in full view. What did the PSO at the wheel do?
Absolutely nothing.
The Five Amendments That Sold Out Roosevelt Island
Roosevelt Island did not lose control of its southern waterfront in a single deal. It happened in five quiet steps. Five amendments. Five missed chances to renegotiate.
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