I know this seems like a random post, but those who know me, and where I live, will understand.
The scenic and bucolic landscape of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania is really a myth perpetuated by the local tourist bureau. While there are some areas in which one can drive on back roads surrounded by a lush landscape and the occasional Amish buggy; the reality is that we have traffic like New York City and LA. Oh sure, on a Sunday afternoon you can get caught in an Amish buggy traffic jam on South Rte 896, but contrary to what some cable stations would have you believe, there is more to Lancaster than the Amish; and while we do not have the number of cars either of those two major cities boast, we have allowed our roads to be clogged.
How did this come to pass?
I'm glad you asked! We have single lane roads, by- passes, and limited access expressways that seem to be perpetually under construction. In fact, there is a joke in PA: there are two seasons here- under construction and not. Recently Lancaster City was privileged to have not one, not two, but three bridges under construction at the same time! (We only have four major ones north and south of the city) This meant that driving anywhere in the city was a major endeavor. But, it gets better, while one of the bridges was under construction- with all its lane closures and back logs occurring- adjacent to the traffic clogged intersection just before the bridge, the city approved a new building to be built! The building was needed and it serves a fantastic purpose, but did it need to be constructed at the same time as the bridge 50 yards away was causing such chaos? But just like the info-commercials of the 90's- wait there's more! While the two southern bridges- the main entrance and exit of the city for those who live south of the city- were being repaired, the Lititz Pike bridge was being replaced. Oh, but that area had already lived through a redo of the train station the previous year, surely there was no need for more construction? Of course there were other ways into the city from the south, there is Rte 324 that parallels Willow Street Pike and the Conestoga River, but that too apparently needed to be closed for a week to repair drain pipes... deep sigh.
Now, lest the east and west lanes of traffic feel left out, there were multiple buildings under construction in the city along those major routes with their subsequent lane closures. One would have to wonder how anyone could get to work on time or at all. The worst part of most of the construction is that we did not necessarily improve the roads. We improved the bridges and we paved the roads, but when a double lane meets a single lane, there is gridlock. And don't start me on Rte 30 traffic!
I am not one of those people who does not like progress, I enjoy seeing the City (not New York, Lancaster) get a little spit and polish. I do think that we need to realize that people live here, and work here and that, while nice, the tourist only seem to come to this area for a few things and during certain seasons. The powers to be need to realize that having the whole City under construction meant that those tourists who visited us would have been stuck in that same backlog on their way out to see the Amish buggies and Outlets- and they might not come back.
