SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — Aiming to ease traffic woes, the Southampton Town Board on Feb. 15 voted unanimously to create a traffic mitigation and safety task force proposed by Councilman Michael Iasilli.
Iasilli, who has previously advocated for the city to act on the growing traffic crisis, aimed to fulfill a campaign promise with the task force.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, traffic in the city of Southampton has increased significantly, city officials said. After a series of calls to address the traffic crisis last summer, then Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone announced a County Road 39 traffic study.
Iasilli expressed the need for the city to play a central role in developing the county study, based on the belief expressed by many that residents face traffic safety issues on various roads from Sag Harbor to Flanders, he said.
“This task force is intended to gather input from the public, identify problem roads and assess what can be done to improve traffic and safety in our communities,” Iasilli said.
There are issues, he said, that the city is already working on to improve safety by working with the Southampton Highway Department and Southampton Police to enhance public safety in Hampton, Southampton and Remsenburg Bays — such as creating better crosswalks, enhancing driver and pedestrian visibility and adding speedometers.
“Similarly, there are techniques already being considered by the city's highway department to alleviate traffic congestion, such as the cone program and yellow flashing lights, that may be expanded,” he said. “However, we need to take a regional approach, look at housing and also add public transportation. And we need to take action this year.”
The goal of the task force is to gather public input, evaluate solutions and provide recommendations to the city council in a final report.
Also serving on the task force will be Southampton Highway Superintendent Charlie McArdle, Suffolk County Public Works Commissioner Charlie Bartha, Suffolk County Legislator Ann Welker, Southampton Town Police Chief James Kiernan, Southampton Council Town Highway Tom Neely and representatives of EMS fire safety communities and local businesses, among others, the town said.
