Daniels' pupils push for better street signs

New Haven Register
Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Daniels' pupils push for better street signs

(excerpt)

By Elizabeth Benton, Register Staff

NEW HAVEN — John C. Daniels School third-graders are pushing for better street signs at their Congress Avenue school after their prize-winning science fair project found few drivers obeying the 25 mile-per-hour speed limit outside the building.

Third-graders Melissa Ernstberger, Hannah Melchinger, Ejoel Molina andGleimy Rodriguez and their teacher, Heather Treciokas, stood outside John C. Daniels earlier this year, pointing a radar gun at cars zooming along Congress Avenue.

The team captured the speeds of 110 vehicles, including an oil truck that was being driven at 52 mph and a school bus zipping by at 37 mph. Back in the classroom, students crunched the numbers, finding cars drove an average of 29.9 mph during school hours, and a statistically
identical 29.8 mph after school.

After capturing second place in the district-wide science fair, the students' work caught the eye of the city's director of Transportation, Traffic and Parking, Michael Piscitelli, who recently visited the classroom. "I'm really impressed. This is almost the same way we do our analysis in our office," he said.