| Author | Message | ||
     fred block Citizen Username: Zachary2 Post Number: 53 Registered: 1-2003 |
A word of warning: I noticed the SO police issuing tickets to drivers who drop off or pick up commuters in front of the train station over the last week. Apparently, the police are not issuing warnings to the ticketed individuals even through there does not appear to be any signs prohibiting the practice. The tickets are allegedly $44 a piece. I would suggest dropping or picking up commuters in the back of the train station (NJ Transit Lot). | ||
| mrosner Citizen Username: Mrosner Post Number: 779 Registered: 4-2002 |
Fred: First off, there were warnings giving to drivers. I think most drivers know it is illegal to stop to pick up or drop off passengers in the middle of the road. Of course, you can actually download a driver's manual and learn the law. It is very frustrating trying to come down S. Orange Ave and make a turn onto Sloan Street and then see several cars stuck waiting for someone to get in or out of a car. That is what the parking lot is for, or the circle in the NJ Transit lot. A little common sense is needed Fred, not another sign. | ||
| fred block Citizen Username: Zachary2 Post Number: 54 Registered: 1-2003 |
mrosner: What kind of warnings were given? I know of one driver who was not given any warning. In fact, the officer told her that he could not give her a warning. You also probably find it frustrating when you must stop and allow all the commuters walking across Sloan St. You are right that it is illegal to stop a car in the middle of a street to let someone off, but lets be honest, if the car in front of you has stopped to let people cross, then why not let your passenger off at the same time. Does this type of behavior justify a $44 ticket? Are you driving in a careless manner when the cars in front of you have come to a complete stop? I don't think so. | ||
| mrosner Citizen Username: Mrosner Post Number: 781 Registered: 4-2002 |
For several months (at least) drivers were warned. It does not mean that every driver was warned. It is illegal to stop to pick-up or drop-off passengers. It is the law that one must stop to let a pedestrian cross the street at a crosswalk. You cannot combine an illegal act with a legal one to justify the illegal one. Usually the police do not ticket drivers. The best way to get people to comply with the law is to enforce it. I wish they would give tickets out more often for non-courteous drivers (and that is what this really is about) as well as drivers who ignore laws and signs. A good friend of mine got a ticket a couple of weeks ago for this and I told him the same thing. It is illegal. This time maybe it took you two seconds to pick-up your wife. Sometimes it takes longer. It does not change the fact that drivers should not stop wherever they feel like. Your logic would say it is ok to just slow down at a stop sign if you can see that there are no cars coming. By the way, it is illegal to make a left turn into a parking space on Sloan street too. There have been signs up for several years and yet many drivers pay no attention to the signs and make the turn anyway, so I don't buy that a sign will change a driver's actions. One of these days a car that stops is going to get rear-ended or cause an accident by a car turning the corner onto Sloan Street and is unable to finish the turn and someone will be hurt. Then everyone will ask how come the police did not do more to stop drivers from stopping because the passenger was too lazy to walk a little. | ||
| JJC Citizen Username: Mercury Post Number: 101 Registered: 12-2002 |
I have to walk thru that very dangerous maze of cars every morning and evening. Cars stopped. Other cars either backed up or trying to get around the other cars. And the pedestrians... It's a dangerous mess. And although you may not be careless, I can't say that of everyone who thinks that is a good place to stop their car. I am glad SO is doing something about it. Everyone thinks the rules apply to some one else. Also - poeple who regularly use the station know what the situation is on that side of the station. to continue to try to drop people off contributes to the problem - and that IS careless. | ||
| Brett Citizen Username: Bmalibashksa Post Number: 434 Registered: 7-2003 |
I drive and walk through that area every day. The left turn into a parking space is annoying but I’m exasperated that some people do it and then back out of the space completing an incredible illegal U-turn. I always though SO turned a blind eye to it and got even more frustrated when a couple would have a little Good bye chat for a minute or two. I don’t have an issue waiting for someone to cross the street; it’s actually quicker then someone kissing their kid goodbye, getting the briefcase out of the trunk, sauntering in front of me. What’s wrong with driving down the street a ½ block and getting out of everyone’s way or using the circle in the parking lot? Talk about lazy, you must be excited that the elevators going in, maybe then your spouse can carry you to it and press the button for you. Hopefully SO doesn’t stop there and also targets people from stopping in the parking area across the street for 15-20 min while waiting. Pull into a parking space so the rest of us can get in there to park. I even see one guy waiting in a parking spot all the time, he gets out of his car and stands by the meter with a dime half way in so if the police come over he can drop it in not get a ticket. It’s a DIME! | ||
| fred block Citizen Username: Zachary2 Post Number: 55 Registered: 1-2003 |
Mrosner: There are many laws that are broken everyday that do not endanger the public. I am sure you do not always come to a full stop at a stop sign if there are no other cars coming. I am also sure you do not always maintain 25 mph speed limit on all side streets in SO or other towns. I am sure that it would be quite careless and reckless if drivers always drove 25 mph down Vose St. Vose St. in front of the train station is usually congested due to commuters walking across the street at all angles. Are we going to start ticketing walkers who do not cross at the crosswalk? I do not think so. If you are going to enforce the laws then be consistent for all drivers. Issue tickets to drivers who are in parking spots waiting to pick up their passengers and who fail to put any money in the meters. Just think how much of a revenue boast that would be for SO. | ||
| mrosner Citizen Username: Mrosner Post Number: 784 Registered: 4-2002 |
Hey, I always come to a full stop. Guilty of going over 25 mph. I think the police should enforce all the laws. I think that two of the biggest problems on Sloan Street are cars that stop to drop off or pick up and cars making a left turn into a parking space. I will think if you parked in the shop-rite lot and paid the five dollars, you would not have to worry about getting a ticket or the pedestrians crossing in front of the train station. And that would help our revenue even more! | ||
| Yossarian Citizen Username: Yossarian Post Number: 96 Registered: 8-2003 |
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| fred block Citizen Username: Zachary2 Post Number: 56 Registered: 1-2003 |
mrosner: I'm glad we can agree on one thing. By the way, I did not get a ticket but a very close friend of mine did. Sounds like the Shop Rite parking lot will remain open for a longer time than expected. I have also heard that with the opening of the PATH Station in downtown NYC some commuters that have been using SO will now drive to Harrison and park there which should help the shortage of parking spaces in SO. Let us hope this is true. By the way, I think the work on the train station is finally looking good. | ||
| Liz Citizen Username: Mschiquita Post Number: 56 Registered: 7-2003 |
Getting back to the pick up/drop off issue, I must say that for those of us new to the village, we found it all very confusing...we desperately looked for signs....not just saying No this, No that, but signs telling us where we COULD drop off train passengers. THIS is what we would find helpful, something directing us to the proper drop off/pick up place. Again, being new to town, we only knew what we saw, which was, of course many people breaking the law..we didn't see signs either way and it was only when I saw to my horror that a cop was rather officiously giving out tickets that I realized we were doing the 'wrong thing'. I actaully (to my husband's horror in the moment) went right over to the cop and requested a run down of the rules. My question was 'what is the protocol for picking up folks?'. Sad to say he didn't really have an answer, all he said was 'not here'. Enough of this diatribe, but truly, there are many new families coming in each day, and we need to know what to do! Having a big sign clearly pointing us to the back lot (which I thought was off limits, only for parking your car, and also appeared to be a construction zone...) would be helpful and welcomed. thanks for letting me have my say. Needless to say, we carefully pull over to the gazebo for our drop offs, and try to keep smooching to a minimum...  | ||
| mrosner Citizen Username: Mrosner Post Number: 789 Registered: 4-2002 |
Liz: The police were told years ago that either by the far side of the Gazebo where there is room for two cars OR in the NJ transit lot by the circle are the best places. Some people use the parking lot by the Wachovia bank between second and third street. Those are the three preferred places because they disrupt traffic the least. I am not a big fan of more signs in the downtown. When I moved here I thought it was kind of obvious that one should not stop a car in the middle of the street to pick-up or drop-off and using one of the parking lots would make more sense. In a couple of years when we have jitney service covering most of the village, I would hope that will be the solution to the problem of having too many cars by the station during the rush hours. Happy smooching. | ||
| Sylad Citizen Username: Sylad Post Number: 57 Registered: 6-2002 |
Put up Kiss & Ride Signs and direct drivers to NJT lot. You could also put up flyers inside the station to inform people that if they drop off on Sloan Street they will get tickets. The design of the NJT lot is not the best for pick up and drop off, but it is way better then Sloan. | ||
| JJC Citizen Username: Mercury Post Number: 102 Registered: 12-2002 |
You can do that but the majority of the people who do this are not the 'confused newcomers' (I think I am still in that category!). | ||
| ril Citizen Username: Ril Post Number: 134 Registered: 6-2001 |
And just to complicate things more, all of the parking spaces and the sidewalk in front of the train station (by Cait & Abby's) are now blocked off. Does the town have any say in how much NJT gets to disrupt our lives with their construction? Most of the passageway to the back parking (NJT) lot is blocked by their equipment and they take over more parking spaces each day--making it quite difficult for people to drop off/pick up passengers there, at the very same time the town decides to deter people from dropping off in front. Take a look at the situation at that 'circle' some evening (perhaps tonight, with the farmer's market still there). Between the equipment, the jitneys, the pedestrians, the skateboarders and the cars, it's a wonder someone hasn't been injured already. And NJT recently put up notices saying (big surprise) that the construction will not be completed according to the original schedule. it's now projected to last all winter. | ||
| Jason & John Citizen Username: Johnh91011 Post Number: 95 Registered: 3-2002 |
My pet peeve is when some wives, dropping their husbands off at the train station, are not the drivers and have to switch with their husbands at the station. Why the heck can't they be the driver from the begining of their journey. This occurs when they pick up their husbands as well. | ||
| NCJanow(akaLibraryLady) Citizen Username: Librarylady Post Number: 1090 Registered: 5-2001 |
J&J.. don't be so heterophobic. I often notice the same phenomena..only sometimes it's a man dropping off a woman, sometime a woman dropping off a woman, a parent dropping off a young adult, etc. Whatever the combo..it ties up traffic and doesn't make sense. NCJ aka LibraryLady On a coffee break..or something like it. | ||
| Jason & John Citizen Username: Johnh91011 Post Number: 96 Registered: 3-2002 |
I apologize for my heterophobic post. You are indeed correct about this Librarylady. Unfortunately the preponderence of instances involve the female of a male/female couple having been the passenger having to switch to the driver position after the alpha male goes hunting/gathering  | ||
| Duncan Citizen Username: Duncanrogers Post Number: 1149 Registered: 12-2001  |
JandJ that almost made me spit milk out my nose.. "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" Wayne Gretzky | ||
| NCJanow(akaLibraryLady) Citizen Username: Librarylady Post Number: 1091 Registered: 5-2001 |
J&J LOL All is forgiven  NCJ aka LibraryLady On a coffee break..or something like it. |
