Question: What's the big deal about a drive-thru?
Answer: It's a public safety issue. Putting a drive-thru on a busy
pedestrian shopping street significantly increases the likelihood that
people will be injured or killed by motor vehicles while walking on the sidewalk.
Putting a drive-thru on a heavily-traveled pedestrian shopping street is a serious
threat to public safety.
As soon as Commerce Bank's drive-thru is up and running,
5th Avenue between 1st and Garfield will become a high-risk crash zone for pedestrians,
cyclists, and even motorists.
The bank's drive-thru will encourage scores of vehicles to make turning moves over
the sidewalk throughout the day and night.
New York City pedestrians are frequently
hurt and killed by vehicles making turns. Park Slope knows this all too well.
On August 11, 2004, 77-year-old Kathleen Nerney was killed at 7th Avenue and
9th Street when a vehicle turned into her. On February 9, 2004, fifth-graders
Juan Estrada and Victor Flores were killed by a truck making a turn at 3rd Avenue and
9th Street. All three victims were killed while walking in the crosswalk with the light.
Encouraging vehicles to drive across the sidewalk is a bad idea at this location.
Sometimes vehicles will race to make the turn while there's a break in traffic.
Sometimes pedestrians on the sidewalk will be hidden from a turning driver's view behind a
large parked vehicle. Drivers will also be turning across a bike lane.
Berlin, London, Paris, Manhattan, Court Street, Seventh Avenue -- none of these places would
ever allow a drive-thru at a location like this
The elderly, young, and cyclists will be particularly vulnerable.
