PETITION TO INSTALL REFLECTORS ON THE INTERIOR OF THE BARRIER WALLS OF THE HOV LANES OF THE GOWANUS EXPRESSWAY AND THE STATEN ISLAND EXPRESSWAY

This petition is an important one for EVERYONE who drives or rides in the HOV lanes of the Gowanus Expressway and the Staten Island Expressway.

I recently requested that DOT be asked to install reflectors along both sides of the interior of the HOV barrier walls of the Gowanus.  It was then brought to my attention that Danny Cassella, MTA ATU726 President, has REPEATEDLY asked for this to be done on behalf of his bus operators to ensure their safely as well as that of the over 25,000 riders they carry daily along this route.  The DOT however, has refused to comply.

Given the nature of the Gowanus HOV lane, being enclosed on both sides by barrier walls, it makes the roadway between the walls an almost total blackout area.  Finally after 10 months of begging, some of the lighting on the Gowanus has begun to be repaired.  Unfortunately, the fixtures and bulbs installed do not cast any light at all until you are almost directly underneath them.  These are the same as the new lighting on the Verrazano Bridge.  They provide very little relief, it is minimal at best.  I have now requested that the lighting be changed to the same type of lighting installed on the Korean War Veterans Parkway in Staten Island, which casts a tremendous amount of bright light on the road. 

Since I typically sit in the first row on my PM trip, I personally witness this situation daily.  I noticed that even with some of the lighting finally repaired, there are still many ‘blacked out’ areas where it is near impossible to see where the wall is and where the barrier wall ends overlap with the outer wall.  Bus operators have to immediately slow down and at times depending on the weather conditions, come to a slow crawl or complete stop and refocus on where the wall is.  This blackout condition then also becomes a blinding one when it rains and becomes extremely treacherous.  I have also recently requested that the MTA seriously consider treating all Staten Island express bus windshields with RainX for this very reason, but it was denied !!

Based on these current conditions, installing reflectors inside these barrier walls immediately is an  ABSOLUTE MUST FOR ALL OF OUR SAFETY !!!

Therefore, for the safety of ALL of us who utilize the HOV lanes on the Gowanus and SIE in some manner, PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION FOR THE INSTALLATION OF REFLECTORS ON THE INTERIOR OF THE HOV BARRIER WALLS IMMEDIATELY BEFORE A CASUALTY OCCURS !!

This benefits not only the bus operators and the over 20,000 commuters they carry daily thru Brooklyn, but also those of us who also ride these lanes in our personal vehicles.