The answer for Waukena and Ocean?

When the Town of Hempstead installed two stop signs at the intersection of Waukena Avenue and Ocean Avenue in Oceanside in 2006, many residents felt that it increased congestion on Waukena, an already traffic-heavy road.

Some thought the problems of that tricky intersection had been solved when, a year later, the town covered up the stop signs, painted a box in the intersection and installed signs telling motorists not to stop in the box and block the outgoing traffic from Ocean Avenue.

New plans by the county to install a traffic light at the intersection in March or April, however, have some residents up in arms — and others applauding the decision.

“It’s going to make it considerably safer for the 90-odd families that live on Ocean Avenue and the surrounding blocks,” said Town of Hempstead Councilman Anthony Santino, who represents Oceanside. “It’s a no-outlet area back there. So there are many families back there that can’t get onto Waukena safely.”

The Waukena-Ocean intersection is the only egress for Ocean Avenue as well as Eaton Street, Gintell Street and Garden Street. Many residents in the area are in favor of the light.

“I think it’s great,” said Lora Kessinger, who lives on Gintell Street. “We needed it. I had an accident going out of there. Lots of my neighbors had accidents. When my sons got their licenses, I worried about them going out and making the turn there. It’s bad.”

Harvey May, who lives at the intersection, on the Waukena Avenue side, said he has seen many minor accidents. “Cars coming out and not signaling, then they stop short and just touch you,” he said. “Nothing serious.”

But despite residents’ concerns about the intersection, Nassau County Police Department records show that while there were more than 80 accidents reported on Waukena Avenue in 2010, none occurred at the intersection with Ocean Avenue.

“It’s going to be traffic like crazy,” said May, who opposes the installation of the light, which will be right in front of his house. “When school lets out, the traffic is backed up almost to Skillman Avenue. You put a light here, forget it. It’ll be backed up to the high school. It’s going to be a traffic jam.

“I won’t be able to get out of my driveway,” he added.

According to county officials, the light will be synced with one at the intersection of Waukena and Park Avenue — meaning that when the Park Avenue light is green, the Ocean Avenue light will be green. And according to Santino, the Ocean Avenue light will be governed by a sensor, and will only turn red when someone is trying to turn off Ocean.

“With the synchronization of these two lights, we will apply timing to clear the section between the intersections and therefore avoid vehicles getting trapped between,” Michael Martino, a county spokesman, wrote in an e-mailed statement, “and [we] believe improved traffic flow will result with both intersections working together.”

A traffic study of the intersection conducted by the county in 2007, however, determined that it would not be feasible to install a light. In an August 2007 letter to Town of Hempstead Attorney Joseph Ra, former Commissioner of Public Works Raymond Ribeiro wrote, “… the proximity of the traffic signal at Waukena Avenue and Park Avenue makes it impractical to install a traffic signal at this intersection.” The 2007 report also concluded that the stop signs the town had installed at the intersection were “unwarranted” and recommended removing them.

“That was the prior administration with a prior commissioner,” Santino said. “This is a good solution. It keeps the traffic on Waukena flowing freely, but it addresses the concerns of the people on Ocean Avenue and the surrounding blocks.”