Main Street safety improvements will continue next spring as the state Department of Transportation are set to paint stripes on the road, reducing westbound traffic to one lane, creating a median and turning lane between Elm Avenue and Route 111, according to a Newsday report.
According to the Newsday report, the plans were brought up in a closed meeting between the DOT, local politicians and residents. The plans also include installing a "Rest in Red" system, where the traffic lights at Main Street intersections would remain red during off-peak hours until a car is electronically detected.
Changes are expected to cost the state roughly $200,000 and are viewed as a temporary fix, giving the DOT time to consider more improvements to the roadway.
The efforts to make Main Street safer have been ongoing since the , who was hit and killed by a driver high on heroin on Main Street at Lawrence Avenue.
Most recently, to give a walking tour along the roadway and PowerPoint presentation on how to make Main Street better for pedestrians, drivers and local businesses.
Although the DOT made changes to the roadway following the death of Sipes, the death of 33-year-old Seamus Byrne, a year later, .
The call for action to make Main Street safe has also come from people outside of residents and local political figures as to come together to create a plan to make the road safer for pedestrians.
