Dates: Tuesday, January 15th to Monday, January 21st
ALTERNATE SIDE PARKING RULES ARE SUSPENDED ON MONDAY, JANUARY 21ST FOR MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY; ALL OTHER RULES REMAIN IN EFFECT
Because of the school bus strike, please try to avoid driving on streets by schools, particularly betweet 7:30 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. If you must drive in their vicinities, drive extra carefully and be on the watch for kids darting in between cars.
Bridge and Tunnel Alert! The Brooklyn Bridge’s Manhattan-bound lanes are closed overnight 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday night through Thursday morning. Take the Battery Tunnel, Manhattan or Williamsburg bridges.
In the Holland Tunnel, one New York-bound lane is closed overnight 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. Tuesday night through Friday morning. One Jersey-bound lane is closed 11 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. Tuesday night through Friday morning.
Keep up to date on the latest traffic news and follow me @gridlocksam.
Monday is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day which means light traffic, but lots of parking tickets because only ASP is suspended. In observance, Metro North will run on a Saturday schedule with additional outbound/inbound trains on the Harlem, Hudson and New Haven lines.
On Chambers Street, ongoing utility work closes the north side of the street between Greenwich Street and Broadway daily 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.
In transit news, there continues to be no service on the 1 line between Rector Street and South Ferry until further notice.
Questions about parking or traffic? Email me at transitsam@downtownexpress.com, and visit www.gridlocksam.com to find out about Transit Sam’s 2013 parking calendar.
From the mailbag:
Dear Transit Sam,
I received a speeding ticket on the Belt Parkway while going westbound in an exit lane. The officer claims I was going 56 in a 30 mph zone. I went back where I received the ticket, and there are 2 speed limit signs posted. One on the left shoulder that states 50 mph and the other on the right that states 30 mph. I’ve included a photo for you to see. I didn’t see the sign on the right. Should I fight the ticket or just plea guilty? Also is there any law against having two speed limits posted?
Anthony, New York
Dear Anthony,
Fight the ticket if the cop gave it to you for speeding at the location shown. I looked at your photo, and there are three grounds to contest the ticket. The first is that having two signs at essentially the same location is confusing. Secondly, the sign on the right, with the arrow ahead, means to me a 30 mph speed limit up ahead, not at that location. The third reason, and perhaps most significantly, is that I see New York City DOT listed on the 50 mph sign but not on the 30 mph sign. Therefore, it may not be regulatory by law. (I’m not a lawyer, but I was DOT’s Traffic Commissioner). I underlined at that location because there may be a sign further west that does read 30 mph, and if it were at that location you received the ticket- pay up!
Transit Sam
