Town, Jacobs Vow Fight for Safer Roads

A public plea by concerned Syosset citizens and Nassau Legislator Judy Jacobs was answered by swift action by the Oyster Bay Town Board Tuesday.

The board voted to lower the speed limit on a notorious stretch of Cold Spring Road from Arizona Avenue to the border of Laurel Hollow and vowed to work toward additional highway safety improvements in the town.

The speed limit was reduced to 30 mph from 40 mph effective Tuesday by a unanimous vote. While Cold Spring Road is a county road, the town has jurisdiction over setting speed limits within its borders, town officials said.

Jacobs, D-Woodbury, pleaded for the change on behalf of a group of residents who said the roadway has been the site of numerous accidents over the years. She went further to say Cold Spring Road is not the only danger zone, citing the stretch of Plainview's South Oyster Bay Road as particularly dangerous.

Speeding is not the only issue:

Steven Fruchtman, one of those petitioning the town's help, said many major county thoroughfares are deteriorating and not being maintained (see his photos, attached.) Fruchtman said poor road surfaces appear to be contributing to accidents.

Jacobs agreed, saying Nassau County's fiscal condition is the reason for the steady decline.

Supervisor John Venditto agreed that money is tight everywhere, but "I don't know how to put a price on a human life."

Venditto and Jacobs agreed they would work to identify other trouble spots in the town and attempt to correct them.

Jacobs responded: "When it comes to safety, it's money well spent."

Although the issue arose at a public hearing at the beginning of Tuesday's meeting, the town took the unusual step to put the item on the day's agenda. the measure to reduce the speed passed unanimously.