CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Residents of Cheektowaga are uniting over the same concerns. Ice and snow-covered sidewalks across Union Road are posing a danger to pedestrians.
A 7 News viewer sent us a Facebook message emphasizing the difficulty faced by people in wheelchairs or scooters due to uncleared sidewalks, so I took to the streets and many people agreed with that viewer’s claims.
Sue Aquila has never had a driver’s license, so every day she walks on these Union Road sidewalks.
She tells me the Union Road overpass of Route 33 can get so bad she’s forced to walk on the road. That same intersection was where a pedestrian was struck and killed in 2018.
“[The conditions are] terrible, the worst I’ve ever seen,” Aquila said. “Now, it’s hard ice and snow over the top, so you don’t even know what’s underneath there. I don’t walk on it; I have to walk in the street.”
Kevin Heffernan with GObike tells me he worries just as much about the Union and Walden intersection, another location that had a fatal hit-and-run just 9 months ago.
“On Union Road, it’s 40 mph, and at 40 mph if you strike a pedestrian, only 2 out of 10 will live, 8 out of 10 will die,” Heffernan said.
According to the town code, building owners and occupants are responsible for clearing the sidewalk. A first-time offense could lead to fines of up to $250 and even up to 15 days of jail time.
I did reach out to Town Supervisor Brian Nowak to ask if they enforce this town code, but he did not return my call.
“It’s on the town of Cheektowaga to ticket those business owners and residents who are not taking the time to clear their sidewalks,” Heffernan said. “This isn’t nickel and diming your business owners and residents, this is protecting your residents who walk.”
