Pedestrians continue to be forced to navigate through dangerous traffic thanks to an ongoing battle over a sidewalk destroyed by Central Hudson.
In 2020, Central Hudson was repairing a gas line in the Village of Wappingers when workers parked a heavy vehicle on the sidewalk of West Main Street. According to village officials, the weight of the vehicle crumbled the sidewalk, rendering it unusable.
Four years later, the sidewalk remains blocked off, forcing pedestrians to navigate the dangerously narrow and busy stretch of West Main Street. With no nearby crosswalks, residents have been seen "playing chicken" with oncoming traffic. At least one person has been struck by a vehicle as a result of the broken walk.
Central Hudson indicated in October of 2023 that they were ready to repair the sidewalk, telling us that they were hopeful it would be "completely restored" in the coming weeks.
Those weeks have turned into months and now it's over a year later and the sidewalk continues to be a hazard to both pedestrians and drivers.
It's unclear whether the delay in fixing the sidewalk is connected to other legal issues the utility is having in the Village of Wappingers. This fall, the Department of Public Service released preliminary results of an investigation that shows apparent violations relating to a struck gas line. The accident triggered an enormous explosion, injuring several adults and children living at Brick Row.
The department says Central Hudson knowingly allowed contractors to dig at the residence without indicating that the metered gas line existed or attempting to mark its location.
After the damaging public relations that have come from last year's horrific accident, rate increases, criticism of poor billing practices and investigations into inadequate storm response, you would think Central Hudson would want to extend some goodwill to the residents of Wappingers Falls. However, the sidewalk issue has remained a thorn in the side of drivers and pedestrians in the village for over four years.
Wappingers Town Supervisor, Joseph D. Cavaccini, says he "share(s) in the extreme frustration of many of our neighbors as someone who often walks downtown to support our local businesses." The supervisor has been placing pressure on New York State as well as Central Hudson to remedy the problem but indicated that litigation between the two has halted any progress.
A representative for Central Hudson agrees, saying that "pending litigation has prevented repair work from taking place up to this point." The company's spokesperson, Joseph Jenkins, told us that Central Hudson "remains committed to working with the Village of Wappingers Falls and the State Department of Transportation to ensure repairs... are safely completed".
In the meantime, village residents are left to continue playing "Frogger" with oncoming vehicles. Calls for the Department of Transportation to allow for a new crosswalk on West Main Street to avoid the broken sidewalk have been unsuccessful.