Mozawalla agreed with Assemblywoman Solages that a redesign of the area is needed. He explained that there is a wooded area between Stuart Avenue and the parkway, so there is room to work with.

In the meantime, he wants a professional traffic study to be undertaken and to have some short-term fixes put in place, such as more crosswalks and better lighting. Assemblywoman Solages said that “bandages,” like simply extending the sidewalks, would be unacceptable as a long-term solution.

Solages and Mozawalla both pointed out that the interchange dates back to the early 1950s, when there were fewer people and fewer cars in the area, and that it is time to modernize Exit 13 to meet today’s needs. “It’s just a bad intersection,” Solages said. “Everyone agrees.”

Vikas Girdhar contributed to this story.