The Hillside school bus accident on Friday, October 15th was just the most recent and disturbing traffic incident that has taken place on the corner of Wildwood Ave and Park Street due to the failure of a driver to yield to the Wildwood stop sign. In the last twelve months, I have personally witnessed three accidents, and countless other near misses. An Open Public Records Act request for all traffic accident data on this corner has already been filed with the town clerk.

In addition to reducing accidents, a four way stop at this corner would slow traffic on Park Ave in the speedway between Watchung Ave and Bellevue Ave; it would also force drivers to yield for pedestrians. This corner is a pick up for students as well as the Decamp commuter bus and as a result is frequently congested with pedestrian crossings.

There is poor visibility for drivers on Wildwood Ave due to trucks parked on Park Street that even drivers who do yield to the stop sign appropriately (unlike the driver last Friday) have to contend with the safety risks of crossing or turning onto Park Street. A four way stop would eliminate that risk that drivers on Wildwood Ave often take when proceeding from this corner. 

Another reason this particular intersection needs a four way stop is that Wildwood Ave is a main thoroughfare from Grove to Valley and to and from Acme and uptown. It is also a frequently used emergency route for the Montclair Fire Department.

Four way stops have successfully been placed on Lorraine and Park, Van Vleck and North Mountain, and Gates and South Mountain, all of which have a similar volume of crossing traffic.

As soon as the OPRA data request is fulfilled, this petition, along with those traffic statistics, will be taken to Mayor Spiller & the Township Council for their consideration.