New Jersey Suburb Will Make Road Closure Warnings 'Less Foreboding'
A New Jersey suburb is trying to clarify its controversial road closure law with new signs after local businesses complained they were losing customers.
In January, the borough of Leonia banned out-of-town drivers from using its streets to skip rush hour traffic to the nearby George Washington Bridge. The town is just a mile west of the bridge, and for decades drivers used it as a short cut to bypass an especially busy section of the New Jersey Turnpike.Â
Recently, though, Leonia officials said their roads have been so overrun by non-residents thanks to navigation apps like Waze that they decided to ban people without business in town from passing through during the morning and afternoon rush hours.
From a traffic perspective, officials said the restrictions have worked: Mayor Judah Zeigler tells WNYC that far fewer cars have backed up town streets, and residents have a much easier time getting around town. But many local business owners who cater to out-of-towners say the new road rules are too confusing and are scaring away their customers.
"Nonresidents, they don't have to come to Leonia to eat or to shop. There's so many other towns," Sara Calegari, who manages the Leonia restaurant Fontina di Trevi, told WNYC.
Calegari and other local business leaders said the problem was made worse by the road signs that town officials posted at Leonia's borders. They said the modified "Do Not Enter" signs are confusing to read, especially for people who are not native English speakers, and the fear of a $200 fine was enough to scare away their clientele.
Over the last few weeks, business owners have become increasingly vocal about their losses. They staged a protest in front of borough hall advocating for the ban to be repealed.
Leonia Mayor Judah Zeigler said that's not in the cards, but he is making efforts to clarify that the ban is for those who just want to drive on through the town without stopping. That includes replacing the current signs with ones that are "less foreboding."
"Hindsight's 20/20. So everybody can now say 'oh jeez, that wasn't a good idea,'" Zeigler told WNYC. "Okay, that's why we're changing it."
Zeigler said he and Leonia Police Chief Tom Rowe haven't decided on a new design yet, but the new signs will likely be more akin to speed limit signs than "Do Not Enter" warnings.
Calegari is skeptical that anything less than repealing the ban will bring diners back to her tables.
"Now, maybe we lost so many people, it's going to be hard to get them back," she said.
WNYC is funded by sponsors and member donations
