Dans Papers - May 18, 2007

On May 4, Kyle Ruhs, 51, who lives on Ridge Lane in Shinnecock Hills, did the unthinkable. Between 7:45 and 8:30 a.m., Mr. Ruhs backed out of his driveway and left his gray Nissan pickup in the middle of the road in front of his house to block the herds of cars, motorcyclists and work trucks that often take the shortcut that winds past his house to avoid the bottleneck congestion on Montauk Highway and County Road 39.

Mr. Ruhs has been a resident of the East End since 1979 and has lived on Ridge Lane since 1983. He has observed the steady increase in traffic and believes that 1996 was the "tipping point," where major traffic congestion became commonplace on Montauk Highway and County Road 39. From 6 to 8:30 a.m., 300 or more cars pass through the residential neighborhoods on the shortcut "routes" and Mr. Ruhs believes that what the Town of Southampton and Suffolk County has done by closing off various roads -- Shrubland Road for example --where left-hand turns are prohibited from 7 to 9 a.m., has contributed to the severe traffic problem on his road.

Mr. Ruhs said that was he did was an "act of frustration." He believes the cone system is a good "temporary solution" until the bridge is completed, but insists that the Town of Southampton needs to do more to alleviate the traffic nightmare for those trying to get to work in the morning. Ruhs left his pickup truck perpendicular to oncoming traffic and said that many people were mad -- some even called the police, (who did not show up to the scene. Perhaps there was too much traffic). Yet Ruhs was able to speak to a few frustrated drivers and explain his situation. Many understood his actions, given his particular circumstance. Ruhs stated that, "I want people to know that I did this in protest to the Town not responding to this problem effectively. I was not trying to make the situation worse for those people just trying to get to work."

Mr. Ruhs thinks that the traffic problem has been ignored and that it reflects poor planning on the part of the local government, and, in his opinion, "government arrogance." Ruhs is waiting for an official response from the Town of Southampton proposing some sort of solution. In the meantime, when asked if he was going to park his car in the road again, Ruhs stated, "I don't think so."

The traffic problem on the East End has driven people (pun intended) to desperate measures. As of last week, David Santos, Account Executive at the classified office of Dan's Papers, located on Hill Street in Southampton, became fed up with having to endure the sometimes 90-minute drive from Shirley to Southampton, which are only 32 miles apart. As an avid cyclist, David decided to drive to Hampton Bays and park in his in-laws' driveway. From there, he gets on his bike and travels to Hill Street for work. The bike ride takes only 25 minutes and allows him to get some needed exercise. Santos commented that it saves him time, money and gas and that he hopes to start up a group of cyclists who commute from Hampton Bays to Southampton and elsewhere. It is important to note that biking on main roads is dangerous even for the most experienced riders, so be aware of your surroundings.

Last Monday, to test out the roadways and see how much or how little the "shortcuts" work, I went through the bottleneck on Montauk Highway while my co-worker, Janine, took the shortcut that runs parallel to Montauk Highway and can be accessed by taking exit 66 on Route 27. I wound up in bumper-to-bumper traffic at 8:55 a.m. The cars barely inched by at what seemed like a crawling or skipping pace. As I looked in my rearview mirror, I could see the faces of many frustrated drivers, with heads shaking and hands hanging out the window in disbelief. I also witnessed a few cars cross over the median and head westbound, even though there are many signs that read, "Stay Off The Median." Many drivers just can't fathom that the stretch of road from exit 66 to the Lobster Inn, where two lanes finally become one, could possibly take as long as it does to travel. I did not reach the Lobster Inn until the clock read 9:22 a.m. I would suggest setting aside at least a half an hour to travel those last few miles on Montauk Highway and County Road 39 on any given morning, from now until Labor Day.

On the other hand, it took Janine, six minutes to travel the shortcut and merge back onto County Road 39. She felt relieved to bypass the headache and was in a generally chipper mood compared to my huffy-puffy attitude towards the congestion.

Overall, the drama surrounding the traffic on the East End is back, shortcuts and all, but if this is what it is like during mid-May, I am scared to see what the July 4th weekend will bring. See you at the bike shop.