DIY Speed Bump on SI Gets TKO By DOT

Parents on Locust Avenue in Staten Island say they've begged and pleaded with the DOT to install a speed bump on their street for a year, but have gotten nowhere. Apparently, it's the Indianapolis Speedway over there, and one local says he puts out his own neon plastic "turtle" safety signs in the street after school, in a futile attempt to get drivers to slow down—but one of the signs was already broken after a motorist ran it over! So residents tried to kick it up a notch.

No one's claiming responsibility, but someone went ahead and installed a homemade asphalt speed bump in the street, with yellow lines painted on it. It looked pretty artisanal, and one neighbor proudly told the Staten Island Advance, "This thing here is gonna save a life." But the DOT definitely frowns upon grassroots speed bumps, so they sent a bulldozer from the Roadway Repair and Maintenance division to raze it.

This is the talk of Staten Island, and the Advance has a sweet photo spread of the speed bump destruction, including a priceless photo of an elderly man in a velour track suit and Yankees cap wagging an angry finger at a DOT worker. There's no caption, but we can tell he's yelling something about there being blood on his hands. (Or dead horse head blood on his hands.)

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By John Del Signore in News on October 8, 2009 4:30 PM

Comments [rss]

Sassafras75

My neighborhood had the same problem, but we rectified it by digging a deep ravine and filling it with punji sticks. Problem solved.

Ace

Any speed over 20 mph is too fast for that narrow residential street, but building vigilante speed bumps without the necessary signage and specs will cause even more problems.

There is no mention that the residents tried to contact their community board. It's CB2 and they meet every third Tuesday of the month at 7:30 at the Seaview Hospital, 460 Brielle Avenue. They should go to the meeting in numbers and get their community leaders involved. That's how it's suppose to work, right?

PathToWisdom

weeds and trees can grow in the cracks of potholes.

I don't like that idea.

Spirit of 76

Easy solution. Instead of speed bumps, carve out a couple of deep potholes, maybe two feet wide by three inches deep. People like to say that DOT takes forever to fix potholes, and they would have the same effect as speed bumps.

just saying

LOL

jpeditor

Yeah, DOT can't let the tax-pater / breeders protect their own children, otherwise maybe people would realize city agencies are USELESS.

(friends waited almost 4 months for DOT to repair 2 streetlights on a busy intersection; DOT only fixed them when neighbors threatened to publicize the next mugging / accident in the dark streets).