Thank you for atttending last night's meeting

We had an SRO turnout with over 50 attendees who unanimously opposed DOT's changes. DOT's Brooklyn Borough Commissioner, Keith Bray and Andrew Inglesby from MTA's Government Affairs represented the agencies. Sheepshead Bay Improvement Group's Steve Barrison and former CB 15 Chairperson and current Community Board member Maurice Kolodin, among others, made some very intelligent remarks. Many questions were asked but none were answered. DOT would not directly respond to several requests for a six month or one-year moratorium before proceeding with the remainder of the project. According to the Bay News, however, their answer was “The die is cast.” http://www.brooklyndaily.com/stories/2016/19/bn-sheepshead-bay-road-rage-2016-05-06-bk.html These are the questions that were handed to Keith Bray for response: https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=D99B44AF41EDC532!1707&authkey=!AO-ecQUl1uo4Reo&ithint=file%2cdocx The traffic problems in the area which DOT ignored in their study were explained in detail to DOT and the MTA was informed of dangerous bus conditions on Nostrand Avenue which also were not addressed in this study. The audience made it clear that although the remain opposed to the changes which were already made, they were not opposed to changes which would actually make the streets safer and improve traffic flow such as better signage and marking of pedestrian crosswalks which are poorly maintained. Senator Golden and Assemblyman Cymbrowitz sent representatives to observe, but only Councilman Deutsch who was responsible for DOT and the MTA attending the meeting was present and spoke extensively. Deutsch believes DOT's outreach was poor and encouraged more dialogue with the community, but otherwise praised Vision Zero. He stated one death is one too many and echoed DOT’s sentiment that steps must be to make the area safer. He also praised the B36 route change stating without any facts or data that buses are now more reliable and that more bus riders support the plan than oppose it. DOT did not provide any data to show how Sheepshead Bay ranks in pedestrian dangers with other neighborhoods or why this area was chosen. Their entire justification for their plan was that the area is dangerous and congested with "a large number of injuries" and that their plan will make it safer. They also stated that the area where the B36 used to turn was highly congested, although the videos I took and are available to view under the discussion in the first petition updates shows the opposite is true. The plan which was attacked by Kolodin as not even being a plan, but a knee jerk reaction, that did not address the real issues of safety. Many residents explained in a very lucid fashion how DOT's plan will actually make the area more dangerous for pedestrians and bus riders. We have just begun to fight. Ask all your friends and neighbors to sign the petition. We will get this reversed!