Crotona Park residents call for speed bump on Longfellow Avenue

Siomeara Christmas explains that "the cars come so fast, like, even if you are crossing, they don't care, they just go like crazy."

Greg Thompson

Nov 22, 2024, 10:55 PM

Updated 2 days ago

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Crotona Park residents living on Longfellow Avenue between E. 172nd and E. 173rd streets say their block needs a speed bump to keep it safe.
Siomeara Christmas explains that "the cars come so fast, like, even if you are crossing, they don't care, they just go like crazy."
The road was paved over back in 2020 and is still smooth and easy to drive on.
Christopher Storey says it might even be too easy, since right now, when he walks his dog.
"I'm scared she's going to get hit, because cars literally just zoom by," he says.
The block is lined with family homes and a church, and Storey worries that "the kids are playing on the streets, and you know, with no speedbumps, cars can just swing by, not paying attention, and you know, it could be a bad accident."
There are some protections in the area - the block right before theirs has a speed-limit camera, while the block right after has a speed bump. This one however, has nothing, and Storey says drivers "definitely take advantage of it. I don't think they like even care to even look."
Christmas says a speed bump would fix these issues, and "I ask myself why we don't have it, because we need it."
Community Board 3 tells News 12 that they are asking the New York City Department of Transportation on adding a speed bump to the block, which usually takes about a year and a half once it is a approved.
The DOT says it will review all requests it gets.