Monday, June 4, 2012

DEP's anti-idling crusade


From the Queens Courier:

In honor of Asthma Awareness Month, a two-week long campaign from the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) called “Stop Idling” will be enforced through June 6.

“Stop Idling” will target areas around P.S. 206 in Rego Park; P.S. 220 in Forest Hills; P.S. 98 and 221 in Douglaston; P.S. 811 and 94 in Little Neck; P.S. 41 and 130 in Bayside; P.S. 43 and 104 in Far Rockaway; P.S. 162 in Flushing and P.S. 48 in Jamaica.

According to the DEP, this campaign is an add-on to a 2009 initiative called “Turn It Off,” which reinforced and clarified the legal, financial, environmental and health impacts of vehicle idling.

DEP’s Director of Communications Chris Gilbride said that agency inspectors are going to be monitoring the vehicles in those areas and said that if people are idling for more than a minute near schools or for more than three minutes in other locations, they will be fined $350 for the violation.


Wouldn't it have made more sense to do this in communities of western Queens, like Astoria and LIC, which have long been known as "asthma alley" instead of Douglaston and Little Neck?

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

theD. E.P.will get rich at P.S.130 at 42avenue/F.L.Blvd, Bayside.
each day 50 buses drop off and pick-up 300 pupils from Main street ,Flushing. P.S.998 @130 does the same with 50 S.E.Pupils. this includes many vans and parent's private cars double parked and idling .

they all keep the engines idling. but is not school out for the summer soon ?

Liu will exempt them from paying .this is the P.S.that he first staged his comeback ,after the F.B.I. showed up at his Flushing hdqtrs.

another gold mine will be across the boulevard at the nearly completed 250 child Asian day care center,owned by John Liu and Peter Koo's landlord,campaign donor.

Anonymous said...

Yet another poorly planned DEP project. DEP should instead tell its drivers to turn off their truck engines when they run in to the convenience store to get their coffee and lottery tickets!

Anonymous said...

Hey...you DEP dead heads...
wake up!

Check out those Peter Pan tour buses
that idle in front of the,
now closed, L&L Chinese Market (formerly the Quartet Theater) located on Northern B'lvd. around 160th Street.

This has been going on for months.

Photos of license plate numbers have been forwarded along with complaints...but nadda!

That's C.M. Peter Koo's turf...
no wonder.

Anonymous said...

Check out the Mr. Softee ice cream trucks. They idle their diesel engines by schools, parks, homes, etc. sometimes for hours.

Their excuse? We can't shut the engine off because the compressors for the soft ice cream run off of them.

The police shrug and do nothing.

Anonymous said...

Maybe if the mothers who pick up their kid would walk instead of driving 4-6 blocks, they wouldn't be so fat&dumpy!Save gas,save your life.................

Anonymous said...

Some of those Mr. Softee trucks have been selling more than ice cream.

One Mr. Softee guy serving Bowne Park was caught dealing drugs!

Anonymous said...

What a plump Queens mom walk 4-6 blocks to pick up her kid and lose some weight in the process?

You gotta be kidding.

She'd rather spend her hubby's money at Jenny Craig...and maybe meet some nice young guy there to "have coffee" with.