Local pol pens letter to DOT, DSNY to address snow-ridden bus stops

March 20, 2017 Meaghan McGoldrick
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One local pol is fed up with the city’s response, or lack thereof, to snow piling up at its bus stops.

In a letter sent to Kathryn Garcia, commissioner of the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY), and Polly Trottenberg, commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT), Assemblymember Nicole Malliotakis — who represents parts of Brooklyn and Staten Island — pleaded that the agencies work to improve their snow removal from city stops.

“In the past 48 hours my office has experienced a number of complaints with regard to the maintenance of MTA bus stops. While Sanitation personnel performed an admirable job of keeping our streets plowed and salted, a number of bus stops in both the Brooklyn and Staten Island parts of my district were simply ‘plowed in’ and were never cleared to permit access between the sidewalk and the street,” she wrote in the letter. “Faced with a frozen wall of snow, those waiting for the bus have been forced to stand in the street and, combined with wet roads, find themselves in a dangerous situation. As you are well aware, the sustained dip in temperature has slowed the snowmelt and the present conditions endure.”

According to Malliotakis’ office, the agencies have dual responsibility for removing snow at city bus stops, with DOT charged with clearing those with bus shelters and DSNY tasked with removing snow from bus stops without shelters.

“To begin the conversation, I suggest that a plan be developed to share the plowing schedule and map between your agencies so that personnel can be deployed to clear paths through the resulting snowbanks as quickly as possible,” the letter continues.  “All New Yorkers share the frustration of dealing with snowstorms, but it is imperative that we mitigate hazardous conditions wherever they exist. Forcing bus patrons to wait in the street is more than an inconvenience, and risks ending in tragedy.”

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