A Safer Austin Boulevard?

Oceanside/Island Park Herald
By ALEX COSTELLO July 31, 2008

Austin Boulevard, which cuts through Island Park from north to south, has long been a cause of grief and worry for residents.

Accidents are frequent occurrences on the notoriously treacherous street, and there has been more than one death over the years.
Some residents, however, are starting to fight back against the perils of the street and are calling for change. Led by Dina Bert and backed by the new Island Park Civic Association, they are calling for reforms, and other residents are responding. ‘Anyone who lives around here has a healthy fear of this boulevard,’ Bert said. ‘It’s always been a problem.’
And the road is indeed unsafe, according to police statistics. From Jan. 1, 1998, to June 30, 2008, the Nassau County Police Department recorded 11 fatalities on Austin Boulevard. And in the first half of 2008 alone, there were 77 recorded accidents on the street.
‘I’ve seen cars speed past me [in the turn lane] as if it’s a road,’ said Bert. ‘We’d like to try and see if we can get some medians put up so we can avoid this.’
She added, ‘People can’t make left turns wherever they want, or make an illegal U-turn. I just want basic safety standards implemented there on the road.’
Laura Hasset, vice president of the Island Park Civic Association, is also concerned about the street’s turn lane, and wants to see a median put in as well, but for a different reason. ‘We have a lot of children and senior citizens that don’t drive, and they get caught in the middle of Austin Boulevard when the lights turn,’ Hasset said. ‘So we’re trying to get a median put in there.’
The campaign to make the roadway safer is not a new one. Barbra Rubin, president of the Island Park Chamber of Commerce, said her group has been spearheading this effort for several years. Rubin recalled a meeting a few years ago of officials of Island Park and representatives of various Nassau County departments.
To demonstrate to the county officials how hard it was to get across Austin Boulevard safely, the group walked across the street. The traffic lights on the street did not give pedestrians enough time to cross, and the group wanted to demonstrate this to the county representatives. ‘We had a grown man from the county walk across the street after pushing the button,’ Rubin said. ‘This 6-foot-tall grown man couldn’t make it in time before the light changed.’ After that, the county agreed to add a few more seconds to the light to give pedestrians more time to cross.
Rubin also spoke of a law against making a left turn onto Austin Boulevard from the east side of the road if there is no traffic light at that intersection. ‘However, they put the signs too far back, and nobody enforces it,’ she said.
Rubin cited a variety of proposals the village has made to improve the safety of the street, and the reasons why each was denied by the county. More traffic lights couldn’t be added because Austin Boulevard is the main emergency evacuation route from Long Beach, and drivers must be able to maintain a speed of 40 mph. Too many traffic lights would slow down traffic too much.
The same reasoning applied to reducing the speed limit.
‘We’ve asked for the cameras that [take pictures of speeding cars and] give tickets,’ said Rubin. ‘We can’t have that because we’re not a legal entity like the City of Long Beach, and it would [have to] be county-wide, and not the whole county agreed to it.’
The village also asked if it could have its own constable or sheriff, but both possibilities, according to Rubin, were eliminated when the Nassau County Police Department was formed.
‘I’ve heard all sorts of reasons,’ Rubin said. ‘I’ve heard, ‘Well, the whole county has to agree to it.’ When does the whole county not agree to saving someone’s life?’
And because Austin Boulevard is a county road, the village cannot make changes to it. ‘[It] doesn’t come into our jurisdiction,’ explained Island Park Mayor Jim Ruzicka, adding that he knows the road is ‘horrendous’ and ‘notorious for accidents’ from his experience as a member of the fire department.
Lately, however, there has been a greater law enforcement presence on the road, according to Rubin, who said she has noticed many more police cars pulling drivers over for speeding and handing out tickets. ‘[On July 20] there was an officer parked in the median on Austin Boulevard, sitting there, waiting,’ Rubin said. ‘As he was sitting there, somebody in a Mercedes went flying by. My husband and I were in Starbucks. Sure enough, [the officer] took off after him.
Rubin added that by parking in the center lane, the officer was taking his life into his hands.
‘I have been keeping track of the fact that there have been all of these police officers on Austin Boulevard lately, and I’ve actually gone over and thanked some that were there,’ she said. ‘It’s been an amazing presence.’
Residents say they hope that, despite the road’s reputation for danger, it will be safer one day. ‘It’s not our road, it’s not our jurisdiction,’ Ruzicka said. ‘But we do convey to the Town of Hempstead and the county our concerns ‘ because our residents do use it.’
Comments about this story? ACostello@ liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 213.

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