A sign banning left turns went up last week at 93rd Street and Central Park West, a small but significant development in a longstanding feud between some community members and the administration of Columbia Grammar and Preparatory School at 5 West 93rd Street.
Community members say that the influx of SUVs at drop-off and pickup times has made traffic and noise in the area unbearable and they hope the new sign can mitigate the backup that spills out onto Central Park West. The new sign was supported by Community Board 7 at a June meeting, although board members were concerned that drivers will now let off students on Central Park West and block the bike lane there. After a 6-month trial period they will determine if it should stay permanently.
“The root of the congestion is the flood of 1300 students and 300 faculty who arrive between 7:30 – 8:10 AM during the school year,” wrote Emily Altschul-Miller, a member of a neighborhood task force working on this issue, in an email to us. “According to a traffic study commissioned by CGPS, Sam Schwartz determined that 59% of the student body (about 767 children) arrive at the school in cars, rather than public transportation or by foot.”
Altschul-Miller explained that neighbors have been looking for a solution to this issue for years.
“The long lines of black SUVs cause a backup for northbound cars on Central Park West as dozens of them line up for, or try to cut over to the left lane to turn west onto 93rd Street. The resulting choke point brings the daily traffic jam, which brings the horn honking, that adds to the frustration that in some cases leads to aggressive driving to get around the jam. After years of complaints with no sign of relief, residents and CGPS formed a Traffic Task Force made up of local resident neighbors, CGPS parents, CGPS security, DOT, NYPD, Rosenthal’s office as well as the Manhattan Borough President’s office. Their job was to figure out how best to alleviate the chaos at pick up and drop off.
While residents complained about horn-honking, double parking, and SUVs idling at bus stops and crosswalks, the chief complaint was about the safety of all pedestrians. Every school day morning you will find the people who walk in and around CGPS trying to navigate between the cars and the frustrated drivers who are often seen gunning their engines as the light turns red to make the left turn from the left lane, the middle lane and even the right hand lane.
The simple square piece of metal, hanging from a light pole with a giant red line slashing through a left pointing arrow may alleviate much of the drama, residents hope. The Traffic Task Force examined an array of solutions including staggered dropoff times or using the south side exits to the school as entrances, but residents and CGPS’s own crossing guards believed the simplest solution might be the best. If there was no long line of cars all waiting to turn left, it would force people to come from both north and south and west of the school and perhaps break the bottleneck.
The call for the No Left Turn sign (from 7-9 AM Monday-Friday) was reached in the collaborative effort of residents and CPGS in the Traffic Task Force, but in the end, CPGS Headmaster, Dr. Richard Soghoian opposed the new sign explaining to the Task Force through his security chief that it would cause CPGS students to be dropped off on Central Park West and not result in fewer cars.
The topic was brought to the local CB7, and with only CGPS as a no-show at the community board meeting, there was no opposition to speak of, and the CB7 recommended to install the sign before the start of school in September for a trial period of six months, which would remain permanent if the trial was successful in reducing traffic and increasing safety.”
We reached out to Dr. Soghoian and the security chief for comment, but received no response.
Photos of sign by Mark Maas.
We have a similar problem on West 85th Street between WEA/RSD w the Manhattan Montesori School – not just SUV’s, but taxis and parents dropping off w cars. It is a noisy mess out there every morning, and we just finished enduring almost 2 years of them renovating the building next door to increase their space.
This idiot doesn’t even have the correct name of the school
I live on W85th between WEA/RSD, and have never experienced the “noisy mess” to which you refer. Don’t know what you are complaining about or how the school impacts your quality of life. I, for one, enjoy the life the school imparts to our quiet street!
I agree – I live right there and cross the west side of WEA at 85th every morning around 8:10 am and have never noticed a think – I see the occasional Uber but no more than on any other block picking people up in front of residential buildings. I have noticed this congestion near some other schools in the neighborhood so I appreciate the problem discussed in the article.
without enforcement (i.e. a traffic camera, or police there), I doubt most people will heed the sign.
It only takes a few tickets for illegal left turns to keep most from doing it. Those are expensive moving violations, and if you do it every day you’re going to rack up some expenses.
Traffic jams, school tie-ups and very frequent honking are already a big problem on West 93rd, compared to many other streets. I’m wondering if people — and the planning board — realize that the planned arrival of Trader Joe’s at 93rd and Columbus is going to make traffic far worse. Is the planning board planning to do anything about this?
With all do respect, at least Trader Joe’s has something to offer to the community!!
It could have been another Duane Reade, Bank or another elite children’s pre-school for the rich.
Sounds like a good idea but they put a no left turn sign at 97th and West End months or even a year ago. People ignore it and turn anyway. I’ve never seen anyone get a ticket for making the illegal turn. It has potentially made it more dangerous because drivers try to make the left turn quicker and pedestrians in the crosswalk don’t expect it.
“The simple square piece of metal, hanging from a light pole with a giant red line slashing through a left pointing arrow may alleviate much of the drama, residents hope.”
Alleviate both the drama kings and drama queens?
a (reaL) first-world problem
Will the “No Left Turn” rule apply to black SUVs?
None of the other traffic rules seem to.
Funny you should ask that. It was mentioned at the CB7 meeting, obviously in jest, that if the no left turn sign could apply ONLY to the black SUVs, the dangerous traffic jams would no longer be a problem!
The best solution would to make 93rd street run from West to East and speed bump it every 50 feet.
Actually, the *best* solution would be to make *all* of the cross streets run west to east (ok, or all east to west) AND make all the avenues runs south to north. All of them.
We’d have safer streets for sure.
You’re welcome.
The parade of black SUVs also clogs up West 94th in the morning and afternoon. Granted, no one is trying to turn left but good luck trying to go east on 94th or get a parked car out of spot.
Manhattan is for the rich first, tourists second. What’s the problem here? Brooklyn is moving in the same direction. The rich are different than you and me and they do have contempt for the little people. Leona did.
Please see my response to #7, as you are perpetuating a stereotype. Rich or poor, respecting other people–and being aware they exist and how your actions impact them–empathy, is NOT about socio-economic status. There are rude, obnoxious, manner-less people in every class. Perhaps wealthy people do it in a more loud, obnoxious way. It just depends on the values instilled in them by their parents.
Nonsense. The only rich kids with a consience are the trust fund hipsters in Brooklyn who make documentary films about the environment while living off a fortune made in the energy business.