'It's Dangerous:' Safety Concerns Over Busy Roadway Near Mall In Dobbs Ferry
DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A new outdoor mall in Dobbs Ferry, New York is attracting more and more people, but many of them have to walk across the busy Saw Mill River Parkway to get there.
The speed limit is 50 miles per hour, but cars speed much faster on the heavily trafficked roadway where it intersects with Lawrence Street.
Franklin Martinez admits he was worried about that while walking across several lanes to get to his doctor's appointment at the new Rivertowns Square Mall.
"There's a lot of cars driving by so it was kind of scary," he tells CBS2's Brian Conybeare.
Melissa Moscoso takes the Bee-Line Bus from Yonkers to work at the mall every day, but then she has to walk down Lawrence Street where there's no sidewalk in some areas.
"It's hard because the cars are going by so fast," she said. "Anybody can get hit if they're not really paying attention."
There's a crosswalk at the Saw Mill and a button for pedestrians to push, but the walk signal only lasts seven seconds before it starts flashing yellow.
Stu Hackel of the Greenburgh Human Rights Advisory Committee is now pushing the developer and Westchester County to put a new bus stop in the mall that's home to upscale apartments, a movie theater, and will eventually add a hotel, grocery store, and many more employees.
"It's dangerous! People should really have the right to get to work and not take their life in their hands to do so," he said.
Police tell CBS2 there haven't been any pedestrians hit since the mall opened in January, but admit traffic is getting worse.
The developers say they fully support a new bus stop in the m all and even created space for it. They also petitioned the county for the change, but claim they were denied.
Martinez says he would feel much better if the Bee-Line bus came across the parkway.
"It'll make it way easier to cross the street and way safer too," he said.
A spokesman for Westchester County -- which runs the Bee-Line -- tells CBS2 they are "currently reviewing the safety and practicality of placing a bus stop within Rivertowns Square."
