dangerous situation on Peters Place
Resident: School-related
traffic problems ignored
Lack of enforcement said to create
dangerous situation on Peters Place
By libby kesil
Staff Writer
Motorists on Peters Place in Red Bank are out of control, according to one of the street’s residents.
The resident, who asked not to be identified, said he was motivated to seek publicity for the situation as a means of averting a tragedy involving students of Red Bank Catholic High School and St. James Elementary School, which are located on the street. He said he has observed students crossing at the unpatrolled intersection of Peters Place and Drummond Place while cars are haphazardly coming and going during the busiest time of the day on the street.
"Parents are going to run over their own kids," the resident said. "Someone could get seriously hurt."
He said he has been amazed at the lack of police presence in the street, especially during the opening and closing hours of the school.
On Monday he said he had placed numerous calls to the borough police and traffic safety departments over the past months but had not yet seen nothing done.
The resident said that at 7:30 a.m., when school opens, and at 2:30 p.m., when school lets out, Peters Place becomes a one-way street, with traffic flow permitted to go west. A traffic horse is placed at the junction of Peters Place and Maple Avenue, along with a sign reading "Do Not Enter." He said he has observed motorists, who he believes are parents en route to pick up their children, ignoring the sign and turning onto Peters Place, thus driving down the street into oncoming traffic. Although he said he has not seen an accident yet from this violation, he said he is worried it will happen. The resident also said he is concerned that an unsuspecting student will be struck.
"There is not a police officer at the corner — just a crossing guard," he said, referring to the corner of Peters Place and Maple Avenue.
There are multiple signs posted on Peters Place indicating parking is not permitted during legal school hours, but they are largely ignored, according to the resident. He said he has never seen any vehicles ticketed for this violation.
The resident also complained about rusty, illegible signs, some of which, he said, were replaced as a result of his persistence. He also pointed to a "Do Not Enter" sign and two stop signs at the junction of Drummond Place and Peters Place which were posted at his request.
He said that there should really be another "Do Not Enter" sign visible to motorists driving down Peters Place who frequently turn onto Drummond, not knowing it is one-way.
Besides the potential danger to students he said that he and other residents on Peters Place are concerned by the traffic that frequently backs up from Broad Street to Maple during those hours, blocking driveways and fire lanes.
"It once took me 20 minutes to get out of my driveway," he said. "And a fire truck would unable to get down Drummond."
He said that neighbors have also asked for radar signs to calm traffic but none have been provided.
According to the resident, the students also use the street as their track instead of the nearby park, often running on lawns and kicking over garbage cans. He said he is also concerned for their safety because they run in and across the street.
On Monday, Captain Mark Fitzgerald of the borough police department said that he will inform the traffic safety department and speak to Chief James Clayton, regarding the situation.
According to the resident, there was a major transformation on the street on Tuesday morning. He observed a police car patrolling the street and, at the start of school hours, police issued parking tickets to any cars parked illegally.