LEWISTON, N.Y. — Safety concerns about driving in and out of Lewiston-Porter CSD have parents and the district on edge, continuing to ask the DOT for a traffic signal outside the high school for years.
Brian Michel is a father of three, just trying to get his children to and from school safely.
Every day, he dreads the same thing, driving in and out of the high school intersection.
“Arrival and dismissal is by far the most dangerous part of my day,” Michel said.
Every Lew-Port student, kindergarten through 12th grade, is taught on the same campus off of Route 18.
This means more than 2,000 students and staff members come in and out at the same times, five days a week.
This creates a potentially dangerous mix of buses, cars and student drivers, all forced to pull out in front of each other at speeds of 35 mph or more.
The district feels the most dangerous entrance is the one just outside the high school. Michel’s passion for change started at that very intersection two years ago, when he narrowly avoided his car getting hit.
“If it wasn’t for me paying close attention and jamming my breaks, there would have been an accident out there,” Michel said.
Michel has been asking the state DOT to install a traffic light in front of the school ever since, but it’s never happened.
“The DOT might not value the lives of our children, but we do,” Michel said.
He’s not alone. Lewiston Porter superintendent Paul Casseri agrees.
“We feel like it’s a reasonable ask and long overdue,” Casseri said. “Our idea would be to have a flashing light right [there].”
Lewiston police chief Frank Previte agrees as well.
“I don’t think a light could be a bad thing any time, especially at that intersection,” Previte said.
The DOT tells 7 News they conducted an evaluation of the area in 2022, and that the traffic volume, pedestrian activity, and crash history did not meet the threshold for a light, set by the Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices.
It added that quote “The Department avoids installing unwarranted traffic signals due to the potential for creating unintended crash patterns at these sites.”
“I can say nothing has improved whatsoever, this goes against the findings of the DOTs traffic study, so we reject the findings,” Michel said.
Frustrated with the findings, both Michel and Casseri are taking this request one step further and sending a letter to Governor Kathy Hochul.
“We are asking the state of New York to do the right thing and protect the lives of our children,” Michel said.
They hope to see her step in and build the light as soon as possible with an executive order.
