Manhattan CB2 committee asks DOT to review signal timing at Canal Street and Washington Street to improve access to Canal Park

Manhattan Community Board 2's Traffic & Transportation Committee agreed at a short virtual meeting to ask the New York City Department of Transportation to review and, if appropriate, adjust signal timing at the east fork of Canal Street and Washington Street to better synchronize the pedestrian “walk” phase for access to Canal Park.

The request followed a presentation by Jeffrey Rowland, who told the committee the pedestrian signal on the west side of Washington Street at the eastbound fork of Canal Street turns on later than the corresponding north-side signal and provides too little crossing time for some pedestrians. "Green barely allows a senior to get from here to there," Rowland said while showing photographs of the intersection and signal heads. He also described a traffic signal head that he said is misaligned and hard to see from northbound Washington Street.

Why it matters: Canal Park currently hosts a yearlong public-art installation by the city parks department, and committee members said easier pedestrian access would support park use and public-safety goals. Committee members and several guests said pedestrians sometimes cross against the signal because of the perceived delay, which they said could encourage risky crossings.

During discussion, committee members noted a boundary question about whether Canal Park falls in Community Board 1 or Community Board 2; some speakers said parts of the crosswalks fall under CB2 while park property and other portions are in CB1. Committee vice chair Janine Kiley and others said that, despite the boundary ambiguity, the committee could still forward a recommendation to DOT to review the intersection's signal timing.

Kate (DOT staff) told the committee that DOT will accept a recommendation and send it to signal engineers for a field survey. "We would probably after receiving the request ... send it to our signal engineers. They're also contending with other requests from all over the city as well. So it could be a few months, or a little bit faster, if it ends up being, like, an easy change," she said. Committee members asked whether the change would require relocating signal poles; Kate replied she did not expect relocation and described the work as a timing/synchronization adjustment.

The committee also heard from a participant who said Hudson Square organizations are working to bring more visitors to Canal Park and that public art or a sculpture could increase park use. Another speaker noted a roughly $4,500,000 state grant for Hudson Square projects, and volunteers said public-art programming is intended to draw more people to the park.

Action and next steps: The committee agreed unanimously in the meeting to request that DOT examine the signal timing and aim the misaligned signal head; Kate indicated DOT would accept the request and have signal engineers survey the intersection. No formal roll-call vote was recorded in the transcript.

The committee characterized the work as a low-risk engineering review that may be completed in weeks to months depending on DOT workload. Committee members said they will forward a written recommendation to DOT to review synchronization of the walk phases and to correct the signal head alignment.