Letters

The East End should be a great place to get outside and take a long walk. But, regrettably, there are too many stretches of road here that are downright deadly.

Take the stretch of Noyac Road from Trout Pond and the Northampton Colony and Pine Neck neighborhoods in Noyac, to its intersection with Long Beach Road, to the Wickatuck Hills community, and onto the Serene Green farm stand, all stops along the way into Sag Harbor. Who wouldn’t imagine a leisurely stroll from one of these small Noyac cottage communities over to Sag Harbor as a lovely way to spend an afternoon?

This should be an easy walk down safe sidewalks and footpaths, not a survival exercise along treacherous narrow shoulders, steep embankments and winding blind turns, with almost no sidewalks.

Or think about the great waterside recreation areas along this part of Noyac Road, like Trout Pond, Circle Beach, Mill Creek and Long Beach, or the restaurants sprinkled along this stretch, all within a short walk from Wickatuck, Northampton or Pine Neck — but for many of us, requiring transiting along and crossing Noyac Road. Incredibly, there is not a single marked crosswalk along this stretch, not at the top of Pine Neck Avenue, not at Long Beach, nowhere. And there is almost no sidewalk, or even a marginally safe shoulder to walk along.

Last summer, I attended a Noyac Civic Council meeting where this topic was discussed with our Town Council representative, Tommy John Schiavoni. Many good ideas were offered, including traffic lights or at least blinking crosswalks at Pine Neck Avenue and Long Beach Road, the addition of safe sidewalks all along this stretch, and better speed control.

Since that meeting, the town has reduced the speed limit here from 35 to 30 mph, and we occasionally see portable radar speed indicators. Thank you for doing these things. But we need much more.

Last weekend, I was driving west on Noyac Road and came up to Harry’s Lane at Northampton, across from Trout Pond. Two little boys were standing on the north side of the road with fishing poles, heading to Trout Pond and trying to cross Noyac Road. I stopped and flashed my lights at the oncoming traffic. The first car coming east stopped as well.

As the boys stepped out onto the shoulder, a speeding pickup truck swerved into the shoulder from behind me and accelerated into the intersection. I leaned on my horn, and the terrified boys jumped out of the way just in time. My attempt to do the right thing nearly cost them their lives.

When is the town going to do something about safety along Noyac Road?

William Hale

Noyac