Last week, the Department of Transportation unveiled plans for improvements to Atlantic Avenue’s intersection with the BQE entrance ramp adjacent to Palmetto Playground. For years, residents and civic leaders have been asking for changes to the intersection, even before sections of Brooklyn Bridge Park were built. Now that parts of the park have opened and draw visitors to Pier 6 everyday, these improvements cannot be installed soon enough.

The dangerous right turn on red will be eliminated, and new pedestrian refuge islands will be poured to shorten crosswalk distances. Additionally, the geometry for vehicles turning left onto the BQE ramp will be better delineated with a new concrete median preventing cars from turning to wide, or two at a time on the expressway.

Combined with the redesign at Columbia and Atlantic unveiled over the summer, we’re glad to see safety enhancements made a priority for our community.

For more details on the plans, check out coverage at Streetsblog, the BK paper, and the Daily News.