Five-Year Safety Campaign Pays Off in Medford

A five-year campaign to improve pedestrian safety along Buffalo Avenue in Medford culminated Tuesday as Assemblyman Joseph DeStefano joined students, educators, and local officials at Patchogue-Medford High School to celebrate $1.9 million in transportation funding.

DeStefano helped secure the funding for sidewalks and pedestrian improvements near the school, fulfilling a campaign launched by social studies teacher Shaun Carlson and his students.

“This is about protecting our children and making sure they can get to and from school safely,” DeStefano said. “It took years of persistence, but we never gave up.”

The grant was included in Gov. Kathy Hochul’s statewide $97 million transportation initiative, with Buffalo Avenue receiving the only Long Island award.

Brookhaven Town Highway Superintendent Daniel Losquadro, Supervisor Dan Panico, Senator Dean Murray, and Councilman Neil Foley joined school district administrators, staff, and students for an event highlighting the grant.

The project began in 2021 when Carlson’s students identified dangerous walking conditions, including heavy traffic, missing shoulders, and overgrown vegetation.

“They really made a case both times that we just need sidewalks,” Carlson said.

The original effort stalled during COVID, but the Class of 2024 revived the campaign through the Generation Citizen civics program, researching conditions, conducting surveys, collecting photographs, and interviewing elected officials.

“When I got texts and calls from all these local legislators yesterday, I was through the roof,” Carlson said following the funding announcement. “It was just an incredible feeling that we finally did it.”

DeStefano credited the teacher and his students for their persistence.

“Shaun Carlson deserves tremendous credit for inspiring his students to take on a real public safety problem,” DeStefano said. “Their legacy will be safer streets for generations to come.”

The funding comes through the Federal Highway Administration’s Transportation Alternatives Program, administered by the state Department of Transportation.

Carlson hopes to get in touch with former students to see the results of their efforts. “They deserve to know the fruits of their labor,” he said.