First "Child With Autism" street sign placed in Schenectady

SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The city placed its first "Child With Autism" street sign last Wednesday after a Schenectady mother made a special request. The sign aims to create a safer and more understanding community for her son who has autism.

"I was very happy, I felt heard, I felt like my son was important and again my main thing is his safety," said Jazmin Garcia, a Schenectady resident.

Garcia first thought of the idea for a street sign when she recalled a state law that passed in 2020, allowing for "Child With Autism" signs. However, she said she had never seen one in her community and wanted to change that.

For Garcia's son, one of his favorite things to do is play outside.

“He loves playing outside especially this is his favorite time he loves the leaves," said Garcia.

However, this activity can also be very dangerous for her son who Garcia said is sometimes not aware of his surroundings.

“My main concern with him is that he’s not aware of danger, he's just always on the go and once I moved here and we bought the house I was very afraid of him just running off," said Garcia.

Garcia requested this "Child With Autism" street sign last week and she said it was installed just a few days later. The city installed two signs, one at either end of her street. Garcia said she now hopes drivers can be more cautious on the roads.

“Just be more cautious rather than speeding, if you see a child walking around here just, you know, maybe that child is wandering just to take those extra steps to make sure that my child is safe," said Garcia.

Shahrukh Sultan, interim president of the Autism Society Greater Hudson Region said small signs like this can make a big difference for children with autism.

“They perceive their surroundings differently they might be focused on only one thing and not the other, they might be focused on the sky, might just be trying to get away from their current surroundings and get a change of scenery and might not know the passing cars," said Sultan.

Which is something Sultan said, many drivers may not know. However, Garcia said she's already seeing a difference on the roads thanks to the signs.

“Cars usually run through here very fast and I feel like there's a little bit more awareness, they are going a little bit slower so I think its working," said Garcia.

Sultan believes that residents in other neighborhoods will start to see more of these signs in the future. As someone who has a child with autism himself, he said it is a great tool.  

“I think there should be and I think there will be," said Sultan. "I would love to be driving around our neighborhood and seeing other signs out there and knowing alright, I need to be extra cautious if I see other kids running around."

Anyone interested in getting a sign like this placed in their Schenectady neighborhood, can contact the Signal Superintendent or engineering. Families will be asked to fill out a form and provide documentation.