A new video posted to a local Facebook group shows a firetruck being blocked from traveling down Skillman Avenue–raising questions about public safety following the street’s recent redesign.
The video, just over a minute long and posted to the Woodside Pride group at around 8:45 p.m. yesterday, shows an angled firetruck from the local Engine 325/Ladder 163 firehouse on 51st Street, with lights and horns ablaze, unable to turn onto Skillman Avenue.
Two firefighters are also seen on the street, seemingly trying to direct the truck.
The truck appears to be blocked by at least two cars stationed in a striped buffer zone on Skillman Avenue, part of the Department of Transportation’s reconfiguration of the avenue to make way for protected bike lanes and other safety measures.
The truck eventually reverses a couple of feet back before pulling forward into 51st Street, presumably to make a turn onto 39th Avenue.
The video has already been shared by dozens, with many worried about the prospect of a delayed firetruck.
Several, despite the cars stationed over a new buffer zone, blamed the firetruck’s holdup on the newly implemented protected bike lane design, which included the elimination of a travel lane at the site.
