A top sign at the corner of Whitehill and South avenues is pictured. City resident Andy Foti spoke to council members about his concerns that drivers are speeding through the intersection. P-J photo by John Whittaker

A Whitehill Avenue resident is raising concerns about speeding cars that run through the stop sign at the intersection of Whitehill Avenue and South Avenue.

Andy Foti addressed the City Council on Monday, speaking to members of the Public Safety Committee and the full council during its work session, specifically mentioning a video he posted on Facebook of one car running the stop sign around 10:20 p.m. Sunday.

“Cars blow through that stop sign. I’m sure you all saw the video I posted – that car was going 55 to 60 miles an hour. We have yorkies and I had them outside. Last night a girl ran that stop sign and almost hit me.”

South Avenue, in part because of South Ridge Park between Myrtle Street, Whitehill Avenue, South Avenue and Smith Avenue, is a popular area for walkers, children on bicycles and people walking their dogs. During the summer the area was used for Jamestown Area Youth Soccer games in the afternoons and early evenings, and mornings and afternoons are busy when parents are dropping off and picking up children at Fletcher Elementary School.

“Somebody’s going to get killed,” Foti said. “There are little kids that ride bikes up there.. People walk that street. All the older people walk there. They blow through that stop sign. Thank god this guy (TIm Jackson, city police chief and public safety director) today sent police up there. I saw them patrol about nine times. The ironic thing is after they went up the street, two minutes later cars were running the stop sign. I’m hoping they’ll park in my driveway. I want them to back up in my yard and watch these people do it all day because this is crazy.”

Mayor Kim Ecklund told Foti the mayor’s office had received information the Whitehill Avenue resident had emailed and will begin discussions on the issue. Councilman Bill Reynolds, R-Ward 5 and council Housing Committee chairman, echoed Foti’s concerns.

“Residents on the south side of South Avenue are Busti residents and I know a few of them and they’re concerned about the speeding and running the stop signs,” Reynolds said.

Foti wasn’t sure what can be done. Other intersections have been redesigned because of traffic concerns, including the recently reopened Baker Street and Hazeltine Avenue intersection. Foti said he has asked about camera enforcement, but there are concerns about cost, and there’s doubt speed bumps would be effective.

Legislation has been introduced in the state Assembly that would allow villages in Nassau and Suffolk counties to place cameras on stop signs in an attempt to slow traffic. Assemblyman Fred Thiele, D-Sag Harbor, introduced the Protect Our Pedestrians Act (A.10169) to create a pilot program that could eventually be expanded statewide. Saddle Rock, a village in Long Island, tried to install stop sign cameras last year as several Long Island villages considered ways to slow traffic in their villages, but it was determined stop sign cameras likely needed state legislative approval since there was no express state authorization to install cameras on stop signs.

“One of the major roles that village government plays is protecting the safety of their residents. Traffic safety is critical to quality of life to many Long Islanders,” Thiele wrote in his legislative justification. “This legislation recognizes that very often villages have noted that many drivers fail to come to a complete stop at stop signs and drive recklessly. This is a tragedy waiting to happen.”

As for the stop sign at South Avenue and Whitehill Avenue, Foti said the solution for now is clear.

“I thanked (Jackson) for showing everybody the video of the guy going through there,” Foti said. “If a little kid was on his bike there’s no way that guy could have stopped. There’s deer there constantly during the day, during the night. That girl hit one last night and she doesn’t even care. If they start writing tickets there, maybe they’ll say, ‘They’ve been writing tickets there for a couple of weeks. We’d better slow down.”