To the Editor:
We had the opportunity to attend the traffic-safety forum organized by Albany County Legislator Jeff Perlee, Guilderland Town Board member Amanda Beedle, and Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple on Nov. 15.

Their efforts to bring together community members from the village of Altamont, town of Knox, and the town of Guilderland was commendable; we truly appreciate their time and efforts to facilitate an important conversation among their constituents, elected officials, and police agencies that serve each area.

Although much of the conversation focused on areas outside our one-square-mile village, the work to improve traffic and pedestrian safety within our village limits is something the village board, department of public works, and the Altamont Police Department work on continually.

Safety measures such as extending sidewalks and resurfacing roads have been made a priority by our village board and DPW team. In the last five years, with the assistance of grant funding, we have been able to complete pedestrian sidewalks on Grand Street, Lark Street, throughout Orsini Park, and most recently Fairview Avenue.

Using CHIPs [Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program] funding, we have resurfaced Euclid Avenue, Thatcher Drive, Lark Street, Lincoln Avenue, Jay Street, and Sunset Drive.

The village was able to work with state Department of Transportation engineers to install a new crosswalk lighting system at the Grand Street and Sand Street crossings to assist children crossing to and from school. Crosswalks have been repainted to increase visibility.

LED [light-emitting diode] lights have been installed for better lighting while helping us be more energy efficient. Increased traffic enforcement and patrols have resulted in increased tickets. We are proud of these accomplishments and acknowledge we are not done; there is always more work to do!

Currently, the village is working with engineers for grant funding to install a sidewalk connecting Sunset Drive to Indian Maiden Pass. This area, including the intersection of Maple Avenue and Bozenkill Road, has been a troubled spot for many years and a pedestrian hazard for walkers in the village due to a difficult traffic pattern.

We hope, with support from our state, county, town, and federal representatives, we are successful and can fill in the missing piece of our pathways puzzle.

In addition to the grant work, our Comprehensive Planning Committee is meeting monthly for a plan review and will be reaching out to the public for additional input before presenting to the village board. Pedestrian and traffic safety is a component of the plan and resident input will be invaluable.

We believe many of the ideas presented at the forum are achievable; additional traffic-control measures at difficult intersections, a crosswalk at Fairview Avenue, digital speed signs, trimming trees for signage visibility, and educating the public on pedestrian- and traffic-safety measures are important additional steps to take.

Working together with the town, county, and state DOT teams, we will continue moving forward to accomplish these measures.

Kerry Dineen

Altamont Mayor

Tresa Matulewicz

Village Trustee

Chief Todd Pucci

Altamont Police