Jackson Heights

On Thursday night, September 20^th, at the request of the community board, we presented our PARK Smart plan to Community Board 3. The plan is a direct response to the congestion issues that the community raised throughout the transportation study. After presenting our data to the Transportation Committee in June, we spent the summer meeting with business and community groups to discuss the plan’s specific components and to tailor the plan to the community’s needs.

The plan helps relieve congestion in the parts of Jackson Heights where it is hardest to find parking—37^th Avenue, Broadway, Roosevelt Avenue, 74^th Street, and 82^nd Street. The plan consists of three separate components:

• Extending meter duration at select locations
• Extending meter turn-off times on appropriate blocks
• Changes to parking rates, specifically a value rate and a progressive rate

We are proposing to implement a pilot program that would give us a chance to evaluate how well PARK Smart works. The following presentation and information flier will help to explain all of the plan’s components.

We have finished the initial monitoring report and presented the findings to the Community Board 3 transportation committee.We found that bus speeds improved, safety improved at key intersections, and travel speeds increased along key corridors.

Our consultants are completing the full monitoring program, which will evaluate all of the treatments that were installed in the fall. Once the report is complete, we will post all of the results on the portal.

Monitoring Presentation

Initial Monitoring Report

In February, we presented our plan to reverse 37^th Road between 74^th and 75^th Streets to Community Board 3 and the board approved the change. The reversal is scheduled for this Thursday, April 5^th, weather permitting. Following the conversion, the street will run one-way westbound.

Reversing the street’s direction involves:

• Creating 14 new on-street metered parking spaces
• Replacing the Class I striped bike lane with a shared bicycle lane
• Relocating the bus layover space one block east

Last night, we presented Community Board 3 with a plan to reverse the direction of 37^th Road between 74^th Street and 75^th Street from one-way eastbound to one-way westbound. The Community Board approved this change. Please click here for a copy of our presentation.

Reversing the street’s direction involves:

• Creating 14 new on-street metered parking spaces
• Replacing the Class I striped bike lane with a shared bicycle lane
• Relocating the bus layover space one block east

This change will address a number of issues that the community and merchants have raised with us. They were concerned about a lack of parking and we will be able to provide parking on both sides of the street.  They were concerned about access to 74^th Street and reversing the direction will improve traffic circulation and access to the shopping district. Finally, a bus layover space is more appropriate on 37^th Road between 75^th Street and 76^th Street because this block does not have any businesses.

As you may have seen, the pedestrian plaza has received temporary street furniture.  The blue tables/seats will allow residents and visitors to use the plaza while a more detailed plan is developed.  Please stay tuned with NYC DOT and your local elected officials regarding planning and development for the next phase of the pedestrian plaza – coming in Spring 2012.

While the majority of improvements have been implemented, the Commercial Delivery plan is still upcoming in November and will primarily affect 37th Avenue, Roosevelt Avenue, 73rd, 74th, 75th, 76th and 82nd Streets.

NYC DOT will soon be posting a detailed monitoring program (including evaluation metrics such as vehicle speed, pedestrian and bicycle volumes, resident and merchant questionnaires) to this Portal website for comment.