The intersection of East 204th Street and Decatur Avenue is finally getting a traffic light, which could ease congestion at the busy crossroad. There is currently a stop sign, but Norwood residents still cross with caution.

The crossroad is located near a commercial strip that is home to many businesses including Lexa Bar & Garden, Price Busters, and Leroy Pharmacy. Because of this, there is constant traffic among pedestrians and drivers there.

There are four schools in the surrounding areas of the intersection, including PS 20, Headstart Archdiocese of New York, Bedford Park Elementary School, St. Brendan’s School, and PS 56.

“It was because of safety,” said Edgar Ramos, the Traffic and Transportation Chair of Community Board 7. “There are a lot of schools in the area and there was only one stop sign there, which created a [hazard].”

Councilman Andrew Cohen stated his support for replacing the stop sign with a traffic light. “Councilman Cohen had written a letter about it,” said Lowell Green, former Traffic and Transportation Chair for Board 7, which had done much of the legwork to get a sign approved. “He almost got hit one time when he was out walking the streets with a bunch of constituents.” According to the New York City Department of Transportation, which also approved the light, there were a total of 15 accidents at the junction from 2010 to 2014.

Norwood residents have taken up different measures on how to deal with the absence of a light. Some choose to face the intersection head on while others prefer to ignore it. “I don’t cross over there,” said one resident who went by Luz. “I always try to find the corner where there is a light.”

Johnnie Bowie was extremely furious and annoyed with the constant close calls that happen there. “Stop means stop, you don’t roll and stop,” said Bowie, president of the Bronx-based Five Stars Exterminating Company.

Crossing the intersection can be especially difficult for the elderly and the disabled. “It would be great to have a light here,” said Bladimir Peña, who crosses the intersection about five times a day. “When my father and mother come down, I make sure to cross with them to be more secure.”

The $100,000 traffic light was approved on Aug. 8 and is scheduled to be installed by the end of the year.

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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.