To the Editor:

I have been impressed by the efforts of the town Council, the Engineering Department, the Department of Public Works, etc. to improve the Central Business District. As shopping is done more and more online, we need to make the effort to bring shoppers back to downtown. One possibility is to close blocks to vehicles. In his letter two weeks ago [“Hoping Council Will Create a Traffic-Free Space on Lower Witherspoon Street,” Mailbox, November 25], Samuel Bunting pointed out that this is done in Charlottesville. A town closer in size to Princeton that has a pedestrian mall of about three blocks is Winchester, Virginia. They have bus routes circling the streets on all sides of the mall before they radiate out of the business district. There are very good signs detailing the bus route information.

People will want to return to shopping downtown if there is something about the experience that makes it stand out from the alternative choices. By creating one-way traffic on the first block of Witherspoon Street, such an experience is possible. No one is cutting off access to the three parking garages. They are all within walking distance of Nassau Street.  When I have tried to use the Municipal Garage, the only time I have not been able to park there or park on or below the third level was when something special was taking place at the library or in town.

The present traffic pattern does not remove a critical number of parking spaces.  Another letter writer, Brian Levinson, sent a petition out with a one-question survey about which is the best solution for Witherspoon Street. There were five choices.  In my opinion, the present one-way pattern is a compromise between the businesses and the people like myself who are concerned about auto pollution and reducing bicyclists’ stress levels in Princeton.

I am in favor of the present pattern. No longer do I sit through three green lights trying to turn onto Nassau Street because drivers are properly yielding to pedestrians. I had an ah-ha moment this summer when I realized that pedestrians have an all-pedestrian phase signal at this corner without anyone having to appeal to the NJDOT for such a designation.

I want to shout out my congratulations to Liz Lempert, David Cohen, Deanna Stockton, and everyone else who made this possible!

Dan Rappoport
Copperwood