Following an Accident, a Traffic Light is Installed on Post and Edgewood Roads

This letter was submitted by Christine Weston

Dear Scarsdale Community,

Today, a new traffic light went live at the intersection of Post Road and Edgewood Road—and for me, it represents much more than a traffic signal.

In May 2022, my son was hit by a car at this intersection. Thankfully, he was okay. But as a parent, it was the kind of phone call and experience you never forget. It also brought into sharp focus something many of us already knew: this was a dangerous intersection, particularly because of its proximity to Edgewood Elementary School.

After the accident, I began advocating for a traffic light. I quickly learned that because Post Road is a New York State road, this wasn't something our Village could simply decide to do. It required the involvement of New York State, traffic studies, approvals, funding and coordination among multiple levels of government.

It took more than four years.

There were plenty of moments when it would have been easy to assume that nothing was happening or that our concerns had disappeared into a bureaucracy somewhere. But behind the scenes, people kept working.

I am enormously grateful to Mayor Justin Arest and Deputy Mayor Dara Gruenberg for listening to our concerns and advocating on behalf of our community, and to Assemblywoman Amy Paulin and State Senator Shelley Mayer for taking up the issue at the state level and working with the New York State Department of Transportation to make this light a reality.
I also want to recognize my neighbors Jason Andrus and Glenn McClanan, who joined me in advocating for a safer intersection and helped keep attention on the issue. This was very much a community effort.

Today, we got to see the result.

At a time when it is easy to become cynical about government and whether individual voices can make a difference, I think it's important to tell the stories when the process does work.
Residents identified a safety problem. Neighbors came together. Our local officials listened and advocated. Our state representatives took action. And although it took far longer than any of us would have liked, today there is a traffic light at an intersection that will be safer because of that collective effort.

My son is older now. The children walking to Edgewood today were not the same children who were there when this effort began. But that's part of what makes this moment so meaningful to me.

We kept pushing for a change that might not benefit our own children as much as it will benefit the children who come after them.

So today, as that light turns red, yellow and green for the first time, I want to say thank you—to Mayor Arest, Deputy Mayor Gruenberg, Assemblywoman Paulin and Senator Mayer, and to the neighbors and community members who spoke up and stayed involved.

What began with a frightening experience for our family has resulted in a lasting improvement for our community.

This is what local advocacy can accomplish, and it is what government can accomplish when residents and public officials work together.
--Christine Weston