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Traffic Signals and Narrower Lanes to Improve Safety

New York
2009
Municipal
Village Of Ossining   
Urban | Suburban |
Ossining, New York’s Comprehensive Plan includes traffic-calming measures to be implemented throughout the village, though particularly on Route 9. Route 9 is the primary north-south arterial reaching through Ossining and onto major highways in New York. Route 9’s increasingly congested condition has resulted in residential road use throughout the village. These residential roads are narrow, steep, and winding, and often dangerous during inclement weather. Ossining’s goal is to improve pedestrian safety and comfort, and to change the behavior of motorists who would otherwise use residential roads to bypass congestion on the major roads.

One traffic-calming measure employed by the New York State Department of Transportation re-striping. Re-striping to a narrower lane slows traffic and increases the safety of the roads. What congestion might be created by this process is mitigated by the town’s restructured traffic signal timing and coordination which is based on traffic data collection. Restructured traffic signals are also meant to increase the safety of pedestrians crossing wide sections of Route 9 by increasing the time allotted.

New traffic lights are to be implemented at strategic intersections where congestion and hazards typically occurs. Data collection is to be continued on the sections of the road that underwent re-striping and signal light restructuring in order to assess the effect of the measures. Adaptations to the original plan should be made as needed.