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Elected Officials Battle Over Barricades At C.B. 18 Meeting
In an effort to thwart dollar van drivers from passing through East 52, East 53 and East 54 streets that exit onto Avenue U opposite the shopping mall, police from the 63rd Precinct have erected temporary barricades after repeated complaints from homeowners on those blocks. However, several city agencies, including the Department of Sanitation and the Fire Department complained to the community board about the potential hazards of not having instant access to the streets. Nevertheless, Fidler said he wants the vans eliminated before the barricades come down. "This is an issue that we have to make a priority within this precinct and it has to be resolved once and for all. We have to use enforcement tools," Fidler said. "It will be easier to funnel drivers if they only use the bus routes. No one wants our streets to be barricaded. We have to make law enforcement a priority because these illegal drivers are competing with our public bus services." Fidler said that one of the primary reasons people use dollar vans is because of lack of public transportation. "People complained that there aren't enough buses, so the Transit Authority added more on the route, but no one is on them because they're all taking dollar vans," he said. He then explained that when ridership decreases, the TA removes buses from the route. "We are privatizing our bus routes in and around Kings Plaza," he added. "I'm asking MTA and Transit Workers Union officials that the next time ridership goes down to increase bus service to attract people to start using buses and stop giving business to these illegal drivers." Kruger agreed on cracking down on the illegal vans. "People are being abused by these van drivers," then pointed out, "but we have to open the streets and remove those barriers because we're illegally taking those blocks away from the city." "Our community is being terrorized by vans and our solution is to put sticks across the street and say that we've developed the secret weapon?" Kruger asked. "If there's an accident, having to move those barricades back and forth adds to response time," he said. "It's also a nuisance to people on those blocks because as they leave the block they have to get out of their car to move the barriers. I just want to wish the 63rd Precinct Captain Godspeed to get these van drivers off the street." However, Kruger later contradicted himself and said he agreed with Fidler about maintaining the barriers. District 18 Manager Dorothy Turano called on police officers from Brooklyn South to be responsible for patrolling the area around the mall to eliminate the illegal dollar vans.
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