Flatbush Express Tunnel?

The photo opp that produced the picture for this piece would not have been possible if Flatbush Avenue between the tip of the Manhattan Bridge and the south side of were a tunnel.

That fire damaged taxi overheated while climbing Flatbush in Prospect Heights in the middle of 2010-2011’s biggest snowstorm on the night of January 26th. On the morning of January 27th, it was still there along with several other stranded cars.

Such incidents are extreme examples of the traffic perils facing drivers and pedestrians every day on Flatbush Avenue. I live a few doors away from the freeway qua boulevard where honking is ceaseless, screeching of brakes is commonplace, and accidents are run-of-the-mill.

The dangers of Flatbush are so intimidating that cab drivers routinely avoid it, and a gypsy cabbie, who didn’t know any better, once cursed me out the entire way down the street as he scraped the sides of parked cars with the passenger side door because he was so scared of the vehicles racing down the left lane.

Speaking of ‘left,’ between Fulton St. and Grand Army Plaza, left turns off of Flatbush are prohibited. The DOT so recognizes the congestion and accident prone nature of taking a left off of Flatbush that they outlawed it. Cars thus treat it like a freeway with traffic lights, accelerating to speeds upwards of 60 mph and slamming on their brakes when the lights change. This results in one of the loudest and chaotic commercial strips in Brooklyn, which becomes downright deadly when those reckless cars careen into the roundabout at Grand Army Plaza, leaving joggers agape in their wake.

Did you know that Flatbush Avenue is a diverse and well-populated commercial district? From to to to to ...there are countless quality eateries, not to mention a handful bars and what seems like a dozen shoe/watch/jewelry repair shops to go with indy clothing boutiques. If you didn’t know about all of these terrific establishments, I’d bet it’s because you feel the need to wear earplugs and a helmet when you walk on Flatbush’s sidewalks.

So, what to do? Let’s make an underground expressway—a tunnel—that runs from the end of the Manhattan Bridge, goes under Prospect Park, and either goes all the way to Marine Parkway Bridge or spits out near Flatbush and Chuch Ave. You then have a beautiful pedestrian boulevard that should attract visitors from miles around, populate the businesses, and generate a boatload of tax revenue for the city while providing a speedy and safe commute from one end of Brooklyn to the other.

Sure, it would cost a lot, and sure, there’s already a subway tunnel (or three) under Flatbush, but think about how nice it would be. It’s worth consideration isn’t it?

I can’t be the only one to have thought of this either. Has anyone else either fantasized this or tried to push it through?