Grand Army Plaza Should March To Pedestrian Friendly Design: Survey

PROSPECT HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN — The results are in from the Department of Transportation's Grand Army Plaza Public Realm Study survey, and an overwhelming majority indicated an appetite for big changes to the clogged artery of Brooklyn.

Just over 2,000 people submitted in-person responses to the survey, with over 90 percent of respondents saying they lived in Brooklyn and 73 percent living within one-and-a-half miles of Grand Army Plaza.

Most told the DOT that they either walk, bike or take the subway to get to the plaza — only 35 percent said they drive.

The main gripe, according to 78 percent of survey takers, is that people have to deal with way too many cars to enjoy the public space.

Other complaints with slightly less popularity cited confusing traffic patterns, long waits to cross the streets, difficult navigation and noise.

When asked what survey takers wanted to see in a new Grand Army Plaza, 78 percent said they wanted more protected pedestrianized space. 72 percent said they wished for more protected bike lanes.

Comments ranged from the frank but vague, calling the historic plaza a "mess," to the specific, detailing how crossing the street requires waiting on sometimes overcrowded "tiny islands in the middle of racing roaring dangerous traffic," the respondent wrote. "This is especially frightening with a small child.”

Overall, the survey responses and comments mostly reflected the sentiments of an earlier virtual workshop DOT held regarding the Grand Army Plaza, where 60 percent of the 270 participants voted for the most intensive redesign which would connect Grand Army Plaza to Prospect Park, unifying the two spaces.

The plan, according to StreetsblogNYC, was originally a pitch from the Grand Army Plaza Coalition in 2007 and would shift all Vanderbilt Avenue traffic to the west side of the plaza and all Flatbush Avenue traffic to the east side. No traffic would pass between the plaza and the entrance to Prospect Park.

Numerous respondents in both the in-person survey and the virtual workshop also requested that congestion on Union Street in Park Slope — where a woman was run over by a Access-a-ride driver last month — be examined, something the DOT says they will now begin to study.

The survey also included an open response section, where over 1,200 folks submitted their thoughts. From that, 445 comments supported the larger scale changes — with 215 asking for a car-free plaza — while 441 said they wanted slightly scaled down changes.

Only 60 comments reflected a satisfaction with the status quo.

The redesign of Grand Army Plaza is part of alarger $1.8 million study for the plaza as well as nearby Vanderbilt and Underhill Avenues.

DOT will continue to hold outreach events in the future and assess short-term improvements that can be implemented.

You can read the full results of the DOT workshop and survey here.