This morning James street was shut from route 9 to Sunset causing heavy backups in the surrounding roads as residents sat in traffic for over an hour. The closure comes in middle of the morning rush and camp traffic leaving no alternative but to sit in wasting precious time on the road
In an interview with the APP Lakewood Mayor Ray Coles talks about improving traffic flow as the town puts up a few stop signs in Lexington Ave and 7th and some no parking restrictions on sunset and prospect streets. Coles than says that the roads that the town controls can be widened and fix but the problem is the county and state roads "Coles hopes that eventually the town will be able to widen streets and introduce traffic lights in some of the most backed up areas. The problem, however, is that many of the worst spots occur along county and state roads the Township Committee has less control over. Fixes on those roads often require years of planning. "If they were township roads we can ... widen or fix or whatever on our own," Coles said.
There is no mention of the lack of planning or upgrading infrastructure together with the growth of the town. No care that people waste their days lose money come late to yeshiva or work and sit frustrated in daily traffic ruining the quality of daily life. These fixes are a diversion and do nothing for the heart of the issue as people sit daily in traffic all day to and from yeshiva or work or car pool for over an hour. A few weeks ago the planning board recommended to widen Pine street, a Lakewood township road as a condition for newly improved projects in Cedarbridge but the mayor said that a ruling pertaining to county roads that you can not tie road improvements on condition of new construction applies to the township roads as well. So much for controlling and widening local roads.
The best part of the road closure this morning is that there was no reason AT ALL for the road to be closed between Rt 9 and Williams St. They announced a closure between Williams and Sunset and closed an extra block only during rush hour for no reason at all.
ReplyDeleteWow! Shtarke gezugt. Now let's hear some proactive suggestions
ReplyDeleteThey were warned for the last 20 years about the traffic that will come. People yelled and screamed ad nauseam at township meetings about improving the infrastructure before granting approvals but they did nothing. Now that it blew up in their face they still dont care yet they are trying to make light of it and pretend that they are not at fault and it aint that bad.
ReplyDeleteSome people will have to give a din vecheshbon after 120 for all the tzaar bitul zman that was caused on so many lives
This.
DeleteThis comment is the only one that matters.
What a waste of time it is for keyboard warriors to talk about monorails and underground tunnels and (stupidest of all) eminent domain up and down the route 9 corridor.
The township was warned about this a thousand times (and more).
They sat there like stone-faced gargoyles, occasionally nodding sagely - as if they cared in the slightest.
They didn't, and they never will.
Folks all over town have been talking about how there are blatant and egregious conflicts of interest between the petitioners appearing for variances, and the builders (or their proxies) that sit on that cursed dais.
But no one cared enough to really hold their feet to the fire.
And any yuchid who dared to REALLY make waves was branded as an anti-semite and a moiser.
That's nonsense - to put it mildly.
And the only recourse that anyone has is to look forward to the time that these folks will - whether in this world, or the next - be called to task for their malfeasance.
No. There's nothing to be done.
No sense in closing the barn door after the horse is out.
P.S. This doesn't even touch on the fact that a good portion of the blame for the lack of cushion in the coffers of Lakewood is directly caused by the insane amount of non-profits that have purchased an extraordinarily large amount of real estate, taking those revenue-generating properties off of the tax rolls, thus causing the burden of the viability of the town on the already overtaxed citizenry.
This comment won't get past the mod(s), but it very much should.
The committeemen could care less. They intentionally appointed the current handpicked members to our land use boards, knowing full well that they are to serve as “yes” men to the whims of greedy developers whose sole interest is making as much money as possible, no matter what the coat is to the general public. It’s that simple and everyone knows it!
DeleteI’m living in Lakewood for more than twenty five years which I’m guessing is longer than most people on this board. As far as I’m concerned Lakewood would be a lot better if none of you lived here and housing was never built to accommodate any of you.
ReplyDeleteBut I still don’t strongly oppose the endless overbuilding and overcrowding in Lakewood. You need to be realistic about two things (1) people - and not just you and your friends- need where to live and don't have as many options as you or they want them to have (2)the quality of life in Lakewood is only going to get worse.
Do you think 50 years ago in Brooklyn there was no where else to live and everyone had to stay in Boro park? NO they moved on to other cities until they max out get expensive and the next city takes off. Look around Lakewood people are moving to Toms River Jackson Howell Manchester etc..
DeleteThe point that people need housing and therefore can only live in Lakewood has been disproven. The only reason developers ares till building in Lakewood is because they bought up land that is cheap and control the zoning and planing boards with favorable friends who give them zoning laws they will never get on any other town.
And the new homes going for 900 thousand dollars are not helping people live either.
Funny how you mention Boro Park of 50-60 years ago. What was traffic like then? Boro Park was like suburbia! What did those new 'railroad' houses cost back then?
DeleteBut look at Boro Park and it's overwhelming and insane traffic! You have a right to want Lakewood to be better. But just don't pretend that Boro Park is in anyway better. In fact, so much of the traffic in Lakewood are BPers who moved to the better place.
I know someone with a body shop business and he`s raking it in
ReplyDeleteprospect has two schools from Massachusetts to Williams there is 2 or 3 camps between the 2 schools the parents are doing pickup and drop off which is causing prospect to be a parking lot at certain times. the first thing we can do for the prospect area is to make bus pickup and drop off only in the summer. but fot that you will need people in power to care.
ReplyDeleteChutzpa!
ReplyDeleteThe township signed a document with the state that they will no longer request widening of rt 9 as a condition to allow new construction.
They unilaterally forfeited the right to ask the state to widen rt 9 the state will only do minor improvements
I live on James, I see "the work" they're doing. First they put down cones for few hours. Then its lunch break. Then they moves the cones that might have moved. Then they shmooz with the cop whos getting paid time and half and wait till 5 o'clock. Tomorrow is another day of hard work,,
DeleteWhat a stupid comment. I live in one of the houses you think I opposed it’s construction. You missed the boat, I don’t oppose building but think it’s fair to ask that we also upgrade our infrastructure to handle those houses, we can’t just keep building without any cheshbon at all. They still talk about widening the 9 and blame the state but now the 9 is from the better streets in town! It’s state county and township roads that cannot handle the traffic. Besides blaming the state and county is not an excuse, the buck stops with the township and it’s their job to have dialogue with the state and county and get things done.
ReplyDeleteAs long as they know they will be voted right back in, even after messing everyone over, they will just continue to do what they (or should I saw the builders) want.
Deletehttps://jnews.us/major-traffic-upset-in-lakewood/
ReplyDeleteHow about paving Drake road
ReplyDelete