CBS2 Demanding Answers: Road Signs Covered By Foliage On Major Roads In Roslyn
ROSLYN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Some drivers on Long Island say their lives are at risk because road signs are either damaged or covered in overgrown weeds.
On Willis Avenue in Roslyn you can barely make out the exit sign to the Northern State Parkway. Another sign in the area was hidden by a telephone pole and foliage.
"We are either looking to see the sign, risking getting into an accident, or have no idea where we are going at all," Sam Fuchs told CBS2's Meg Baker.
Using GPS, Fuchs is guiding his father as they drop off dry cleaning to clients. But he said they waste way too much time making wrong turns because of signs blocked by tree branches and other vegetation.
"I don't know which way I am going -- north, south or should I take a right or a left," Fuchs said.
Baker drove on the Northern State Parkway to see for herself. On the eastbound side, exit after exit, signs were partially blocked.
"If you don't know your way around very well, it can be very upsetting, it can even be dangerous leading to, perhaps, a last-minute maneuver," said Robert Sinclair, with AAA.
AAA said the DOT needs to immediately cut the foliage before the situation turns deadly.
"Just another one of the distractions drivers face these days," Sinclair said.
Baker's interview was interrupted by loud beeping from a vehicle behind a car that slowed down near the obstructed sign on Willis Avenue.
The state Department of Transportation said in a statement: "Crews are checking into the areas on the Northern Parkway and Grand Central/Willis Avenue area and will clear any obstructions."
No word though on how quickly the growth will be cleared, Baker reported.
According to AAA, a quarter to a third of accidents are caused by distracted driving. That number increases when drivers are confused by what is going on outside of the vehicle, such as obstructed road signs.
