VOICES

 

STOP THE MADNESS: Give Us a Stop Sign

December 15, 2018 | ISSUE 10

By Harrison Yang

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As most of us know, there is an obvious social concern located at the intersection between 147th Street and Barclay Ave. because there is no stop sign or traffic light. This is a problem, and may lead to potential accidents that can be harmful to the school community and the residents that are living around the vicinity. We, as a part of the FIHS community, cherish every person’s life and safety. In order to maximize reduction of traffic accidents, we hope that we would be able to have a stop sign at both sides of the street. 

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One of the 12th graders, Hosna said, ”I feel like, from my experience, cars don’t stop if there was no stop sign. So I think it can be dangerous to people who’re crossing the street.” There are also students like Luxuan Zhang who has a different opinion on this issue. He said, ”I think we don’t need a stop sign, it’s not dangerous. We can just look around before we cross the street.” Overall, students are concerned about the traffic condition, and want something that can give them the sense of security. 

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Mr. Kevin Hesseltine, Assistant Principal of FIHS remembers, “There was a time where I had to actually grab a student as they were crossing the road because as they’re started crossing the road, the car went flying down. It went very fast through the intersection. Crossing streets shouldn't be the act of risking your life. I think if we put a four way stop there it would really slow people down a little bit.” 

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After much inquiry, we asked Councilman Peter Koo’s office about the matter and they said that we should show the seriousness of the issue by creating a petition, collecting signatures of those who shared the same thought and are willing to support us, and delivering the petition to the NYC Department of Transportation. Councilman Peter Koo's office said they would like to show their support by helping us submitting the signed petition to DOT. 

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We have already collected many signatures and will collect many more. If you want to support our cause, please come to Room 316 and speak to Ms. Jillian or Mr. Tony about signing the petition or working for the cause.