Found the story in this morning’s Record about a study that blames New York City for traffic on the George Washington Bridge, all of which causes traffic headaches in Fort Lee (where the GWB sits on the New Jersey side) a little funny. What’s funny – they spent money on a study. Most of the problems of traffic on the GWB can be answered by saying three words:

Cross Bronx Expressway.

The Cross Bronx is not an expressway most of the day. It is a parking lot. When coming out from under the apartment buildings, the Alexander Hamilton Bridge is a joke. The roadway is filled with holes and in many spots is uneven and wavy. Add to the problems of people who take the upper level who come out from under the apartments and try and move over to get to the right hand lanes in order to take the Major Deegan, while those who took the lower level are trying to move over to the left hand lanes to take the Cross Bronx.

It is a mix of headaches that, believe it or not, causes traffic.

And when the bridge backs up into New Jersey from the New York side, who gets hurt? Fort Lee. And drivers like me who always seem to sit in traffic at the bridge.

I don’t think a study was need to figure this one out. All you need to do is drive in this area of Bergen County once or twice, and you know that GWB traffic is caused by New York City.

I have one complaint to add to the “Cross Bronx stinks” study mentioned in today’s Record: the Deegan south at the Alexander Hamilton. Ugh! It is a rare day when anyone who takes this ramp from the Deegan up to the Alexander Hamilton to the GWB doesn’t sit in at least 30 – 45 minutes worth of traffic. And that is just to get from the Deegan up to the Alexander Hamilton so you can have the pleasure of driving under the apartments towards the bridge.