Windsor Terrace Parents Want Crossing Guard at Ocean Parkway and Caton Avenue

WINDSOR TERRACE, BROOKLYN — As of Friday, more than 250 people had signed an online petition calling for new school zone signs and either a crossing guard or traffic agent at the intersection of Ocean Parkway and Caton Avenue in Windsor Terrace.

The petition, started by Meema Spadola, states that it was authored on behalf of parents and guardians connected to neighborhood schools P.S. 130 and M.S. 839.

"The North side of this intersection is particularly dangerous," the petition reads, "with many drivers turning onto the Ocean Parkway service road from Caton Avenue, often without regard for pedestrians."

"Already since the beginning of the school year," it continues, "we’ve had numerous complaints from school and community members about drivers endangering both children and adults crossing with the light at this intersection."

The petition also references "the heartbreaking loss" of Mohammad Uddin, a 14-year-old who was killed in a hit-and-run crash at the intersection of E. 7th Street and Caton Avenue in November 2014.

According to the New York Daily News, Uddin was "an intellectually gifted freshman at Brooklyn Technical High School."

A relative, Faisal Kabir, told the paper that he arrived at the scene of the crash to find Uddin "lying in the middle of the street face-down. He was breathing really hard. He was alive but looked hurt really bad. I called 911.”

The vehicle's driver was arrested later, the News reported.

"We are asking," the petition concluded, "for action to avoid another injury or even death."

A variety of pedestrian safety improvements have come to the area since Uddin's passing, including a traffic signal at Caton Avenue and E. 8th Street.

“It will always be too late for [Mohammad] Uddin, but in the past year and a half, we have done everything we can to honor his memory by making sure all children are safer along Caton Avenue,” said Councilman Brad Lander this past May, a supporter of the projects and Windsor Terrace's representative in the City Council.

Lander's website also includes a project tracker listing area pedestrian safety projects. The tracker shows that last year, three pedestrian islands were added to Caton Avenue near Ocean Parkway, along with a delayed left turn signal and an adjustment to the local B16 bus stop.

But those behind Meema Spadola's petition clearly want more done. A spokesman for Lander said that the Councilman supports the proposed changes, and recently met with officers from the 72nd Precinct about them.

Pictured at top: the intersection of Ocean Parkway and Caton Ave. Image via Google Maps