Newsday (Suffolk Edition) from Melville, New York • 49

Newsday (Center (NcwadajStap) Dilemma of the 'Dream' Road The Long Island Expressway looked wonderful on the drawing boards but in actuality it has provided some complex, unexpected problems. Wfr'vXv slior the toad paralleling Route 25A from central Queens out to the Nisscquogue River where a bridge short-cut would by-pass the present circuitous route between Fort Salonga and Stony Brook. Hie only bright spot in the cloud of exhaust fumes raised by the Expressway is the impressive spurt it has given to the recent development of light industry in Nassau. "Its a hey factor in selling space out here," said one real estate man. "Fast truck service is vital to most of the firms relocating on Long Island.

They want to be near the Express way. For this reason the growth of industrial parks came in Syosset, Plainview, Westbury arid Hicks' vflle, all areas within minutes of the Expressway. Without an expressway the South Shore has suffered in its industrial At Rivcrhcad In 1967 i At the present rate of spending the Expressway will reach Riverhead in 1967, five years from now and $220,000,000 later. The important link into Suffolk County, to Veterans Highway, is expected next year, putting MacArthur Airport within easy driving distance of Queens and Nassau. The impact on Suffolk's economy will far exceed the road's effect in Nassau, say the experts, but they warn that despite the snail-like progress of the highway it will go through the eastern county before they're ready for it.

Suffolk County Executive Dennison said the road will "change the en-a tire concept" of planning in the county. Tve been trying for tw'O years to get the towns to adopt -master plans, based on the highway route," he said. "But I haven't had much success. Unless we plan now well be in bad shape." Even now housing developments are springing up ahead of the Expressway and along its route. Builders are promoting "easy access" to the city by car.

Close-in Commack," for example, is a slogan based upon ideal driving time. But along the completed section of the road motorists daily jockey-for position and fight the bumper-to-bumper battle to get to work. Car commuters, going in bofh directions, vie for -lanes with convoys of trucks roaring toward' their destinations. Some call it "the creepway, or the crawlway By Francis Wood Almost a 'decade ago a bold, new plan was unveiled for a six-lane, express highway to stretch from Manhattan to Riverhead, designed to solve Long Island's chronic traffic jams, restore the flow of trucks and cars and open undeveloped areas to economic expansion. But that dream road of the drawing board the Long Island Expressway is turning into a nightmare.

Although it is riot yet half completed, the Expressway is jammed with capacity traffic from divider to shoulder during rush hours. And now, with 28 miles finished and 53 miles to go, officials are already talking about another expressway 'along a parallel route. Here are some examples of how the hopes for the Expressway have fizzled: Surveys show the burden of traffic on other highways to Long Island hasnt been lessened appreciably by the Expressway. The Expressway has generated additional streams of trucks and cars not env isioned by the planners. The traffic peak or capacity of the Expressway has been reached already, five years before it was due.

During off hours it takes 35 minutes to drive from the Midtown Tunnel to the Expressways exit on South Oyster Bay Road. During the late after- noon rush hour the trip takes more than twice the time. The Expressway carries daily from 125,000 to 150,000 vehicles about 50 per cent more traffic than any other eas't-west On a -Friday last July, cars and trucks were clocked at one point in Nassau, near the city line. The traffic doubled at this point over the previous year. On Sunrise Highway, for example, a comparable high-' way carrying truck-auto traffic, last years daily average was 52,000 vehicles at a point just east jof the city line.

Seemed More Than Adequate -These are figures that plague the planners. For when the Expressway was first proposed it seemed more than adequate to any the overflow traffic blinding Tights in opposite lanes, too-skimpy center malls and too-low divider fences. doping parallel roads such as Northern Boulevard, CNcwsday Photo by Weber) It's bumper to bumper ell the way in the evening rush hour on the Long Island Expressway leading to Nassau. Jericho Turnpike and Northern State Parkway. And according to Austin Saar, district engineer tor the State Department of Public Works, traffic counts showed a drop-off when sections of the Expressway were opened.

"But soon they (the other roads) were back to normal," he said, indicating that over a period of time the Expressway has not alleviated heavy traffic on other arteries. In addition, the Expressway has created new truck-anto streams that Curious enough the "reverse flow on the Expressway is just about as had as the commuter traffic, inbound in the morning and outbound at night. That's why we cant make it six express lanes inbound and six out at night," said Saar. Too many going the other way at those times." Some see nothing but chaos with continued, building of roads like Expressway, mods gencrat- ing more and more traffic on less and less space, never existed before, with each mile of road adding Said one expat, The express highway merely tikes new usen daily, they kid me about paving the the traffic jam off the streets and puts it on the id put Saar said Long Island "probably" needs another expressway already but would not confirm any Lone already freeway." If thats the case Lone Island is due for some Record traffic snarls in tne future. Planner -Robert Moses, though, said hes satisfied that our present highway program on Long Island, including the Expressway and widening of Sunrise Highway and the parkways, "will for some years meet the demands for through east and west travcL whole Island," said Saar.

specific plans other than that it -would follow a North Shore route. A spokesman in Albany-would say only that another expressway is in the talking stage." It is known, however, that preliminary maps Tuesday, January 30,1962 a (Ncwaday Fbota by Suwntn; rib. OnrtrgiM) The has brought with it a boom in housing. Harris a scene along the road in.