It’s 8:45 p.m. and there’s gridlock from Atlantic Avenue all the way to Rockaway along Woodhaven Boulevard. Horns are blaring in a sonorous display of anxiety and impatience while commuters squirm in their seats to get a better look at what’s causing the hold-up.

It’s a minor fender-bender, right in the middle of the massive intersection.

Traffic conditions like these are common on Woodhaven Boulevard, where the Department of Transportation (DOT) is conducting a multi-year traffic study of the strip.

The DOT held its third public input session on the project June 24.

“We got together with the police department and discussed ideas, but now we want to hear from the community,” Maura McCarthy, DOT's Queens Borough Commissioner, said at the meeting, which was held in a small, packed room at the Forest Park Cooperative.

DOT aims to improve Woodhaven Boulevard’s traffic flow, public transit, parking and safety by studying its layout from Queens Boulevard to Rockaway Boulevard. The 3.2-mile stretch of road runs through Community Boards 4, 5, 6, 9 and 10.

Running roughly north to south, Woodhaven is a vital lifeline for Queens drivers. In recent years it has also become a shortcut for livery cabs looking to avoid traffic on the Van Wyck Expressway on their way to the JFK.

And in another trend, seniors have experienced increased difficulty in crossing the boulevard before the lights change.

“Traffic conditions aren’t what they used to be on Woodhaven,” said Frank Gulluscio, the district manager of CB6. “The timing of the lights is off. It’s not that safe for some people to cross.”

Another major area of concern for DOT and residents alike is the intersection of Woodhaven and Rockaway boulevards and Liberty Avenue.

“There are spikes in accidents around Liberty and Rockaway because there is too much traffic going through that area,” said McCarthy.

Karyn Petersen, the district manager of CB10, agreed the intersection is a problem. “My major concern is along Liberty and Rockaway,” she said. “It‘s too congested [and there are] too many accidents.”

DOT began the study in January of 2008 and is set to complete it in January of 2011. When the proposed changes will go into effect - and what they might be, exactly - remains to seen. A fourth meeting will be held later in the fall.