I’m writing to you in regard to the George Sheehan Race [Classic] and related activities that took place in Red Bank on Aug. 10 and 11. I think the time has come for this race to take place in another town, and the method of traffic flow, or better yet, lack of traffic flow be addressed.
On Friday, Aug. 10, it was an adventure to get around town; this wasn’t even the day of the race. I was on West Front Street heading home and traffic in both directions was backed up.
Part of the problem was because Broad Street was closed for a race activity. Drivers were trying cut into traffic from West Street and Maple Avenue. All this cutting in occurred with traffic at a standstill or crawl. On top of that, police officers were stationed at some intersections and their method of controlling traffic was to sit in their air-conditioned police cars and do nothing while we just sat or crawled in traffic.
I’m sure Saturday was no better. I managed to walk into town, but from what I saw, the movement of cars on some streets was no better.
The town’s solution to all this is to have us find alternate ways to get around the race. In their wisdom, they forget to realize that this is not always realistic.
The way the roadblocks are set up, it is as if the center of town and surrounding areas are in a box — no simple way to enter or exit — no matter how hard one tries.
On top of all this, once you get the town back, you contend with the empty water and juice bottles and other litter left behind from the race.
Perhaps it is time for this race to move on to another town, such as Long Branch, Asbury Park, or Spring Lake, which has Ocean Avenue, along with a better variety of streets that can accommodate the race and perhaps not impede the lives of the townspeople.
If the Borough Council of Red Bank feels that it is so necessary to retain this race, they should come up with a better plan for vehicle movement.
The answers of "the streets are closed because of a road race," or "find alternate ways to get around the race" or the prospect of sitting in traffic does not lessen the feeling of being "boxed in" in your own town.
Jose Torres
Red Bank