It is ironic that the Cape Gazette published two letters about Old Landing Road on Nov. 9, the very day traffic on it and adjoining roads became gridlocked when a collision required the closing of Coastal Highway.
As Bill Atkins and Bob Kaplan noted in their letters, Old Landing Road is the sole means of access and egress for those who live in the thousands of homes between the Warrington Road intersection and Rehoboth Bay.
In urging that Sussex County planners and DelDOT create a connection between Old Landing Road and Route 24, Mr. Kaplan noted that “there is no other access for emergency vehicles or exit routes during major storm evacuations or road blockages.”
On Nov. 9, all traffic from Coastal Highway was detoured along Old Landing and Warrington roads for several hours. As traffic normally accommodated by a six-lane highway was funneled onto two-lane roadways, vehicular flow in both directions ground to a near halt.
It took my wife and me one hour to reach the Midway Center, a 2.7-mile trip that normally takes about five minutes.
What would have happened had a fire erupted in one of the thousands of homes along the Old Landing Road corridor? Or what if someone in the area required emergency medical service? With the roads gridlocked, first responders would have lost precious minutes trying to reach the emergency. Double that, if an ambulance had to backtrack through the traffic to take a patient to Beebe Healthcare in Lewes.
County officials continue to approve additional development along Old Landing Road, but neither they nor DelDOT are addressing the need for a second access point. As Messrs. Atkins and Kaplan observed, providing a second means of access to Old Landing Road isn’t simply a matter of convenience. It could be a matter of life or death. And if lives one day are lost because of traffic congestion, Sussex Planning & Zoning, Sussex County Council and DelDOT each will bear some responsibility.
Peter A. Harrigan
Rehoboth Beach
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