East End Gridlock

By Drew Scott

I sat in traffic, bumper to bumper, heading out to Southampton to cover a transportation story today. But why is that any summer surprise? Traffic has been this way for years now and is getting worse every day some say.

Now the 5 Towns Rural Transit group and the town of Southampton are sharing a new report with the east end towns, assessing the transportation needs of Riverhead, Southampton, Shelter Island, East Hampton and Southold. The "interim" study http://www.town.southampton.ny.us/DeptDirectorygallery/Land/2008/EastEndTransInterimReport.pdf conclusion: It's too crowded, too developed, and growing in population too fast to keep up with the transportation needs of the next decade.

Linda Kabot, the Southampton town supervisor, told me the next step is a feasibility study of HOW to get people around the east end, most efficiently and cost effectively. Some want to take over the Long Island Rail Road, while others suggest more LIRR trains and vans or buses to meet those trains when they arrive.

The one thing that struck me was all these miles of track, and all these east end stations and fewer than five daily trains scheduled. One resident I interviewed says it's a waste, yet another says a transit system that works may never get off the ground.

In the meantime, I'm still sitting on County Road 39 waiting for the light to turn green, but there's fifty cars in front of me!

 

Comments

[Kathleen Cunningham]

The East End Shuttle concept, which compelled the NYS Shared Municipal Services grant that is funding the current feasibility study, could be the solution to East End transit woes.

The character of the East End is very different from that of the western portion of Suffolk County and ever more so from the urban center of NY which the MTA and LIRR were designed to serve. The coordinated rail and bus network that Five Town Rural Transit proposed, if demonstrated as economically feasible, could relieve a percentage of the vehicular traffic.

More paved roadways are a widely unpopular prospect for East End residents. Public transportation provides options for the transit dependent such as underaged drivers, the elderly and handicapped. Appropriately timed service connecting train stations with buses to outlying destinations, can relieve congestion by offering local residents a REAL option for getting to and from work, shopping and entertainment.

We'll see what the study reveals, but Five Town Rural Transit projections generally support such a transportation system.