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Trustee urges resolution, short‑ and long‑term steps to discourage I‑95 cut‑through on Mamaroneck Avenue
Summary
A trustee asked the Village of Merrick Board on Sept. 23 to adopt a policy discouraging use of Mamaroneck Avenue as a shortcut to I‑95, directing staff to study short‑term signage and enforcement and to seek a state DOT solution with neighboring municipalities. Trustees agreed to draft a resolution and pursue consultant analysis.
A trustee urged the Village of Merrick Board of Trustees on Sept. 23 to adopt a formal policy discouraging motorists from using Mamaroneck Avenue as a cut‑through to I‑95 and to direct staff to develop short‑ and long‑term measures to protect the Washingtonville neighborhood.
The trustee framed the request as three linked actions: a board statement that the village will discourage through traffic on Mamaroneck Avenue; a resolution asking the New York State Department of Transportation and neighboring municipalities (including Mamaroneck and Larchmont) to study an additional I‑95 northbound access that would redirect traffic away from the village; and a staff assignment to identify short‑term engineering and signage options to deter return of cut‑through volumes when the Waverly Avenue bridge reopens in mid‑November.
"This is not a cut through," the trustee said, urging the board to make discouragement official while acknowledging limits on enforcement. Board members and staff discussed specific short‑term options such as pole‑mounted speed‑display signs, new signage directing I‑95 traffic to alternative entrances, and focused enforcement of "no through trucks" restrictions. Traffic‑committee members and staff said speed humps and temporary speed‑hump pilots could be considered on certain residential streets after engineering study and resident outreach.
Trustees and traffic‑committee representatives repeatedly stressed that some measures are not legally enforceable for passenger vehicles, but that signage, targeted enforcement for commercial trucks, and engineering changes can reduce volume. A traffic commission member said the committee has already identified a list of candidate streets in Washingtonville for speed‑hump consideration and is working with consultants to refine a policy.
Trustees asked staff to bring a costed plan and recommended language for a resolution at the next meetings and to consult the village's traffic engineer about a detailed origin‑destination study and other network impacts. The board also agreed to ask staff to invite neighboring municipalities to join any formal request to the state DOT.
Next steps: staff will prepare a draft resolution and proposals for short‑term measures and a consultant scope for a more detailed traffic study; trustees expect to consider the resolution and funding options at the upcoming regular meeting.
