thedrifter
05-04-07, 06:10 AM
May 4, 2007 - 12:00AM
Motorists still express N.C. 172 inconveniences a month after base move
CHRISSY VICK
DAILY NEWS STAFF
When Camp Lejeune began restricting access along N.C. 172, it caused an outcry within the civilian community.
Vehicles without a Department of Defense decal are no longer allowed to cut through the base using the state highway, a popular shortcut connecting Sneads Ferry to Hubert.
Now, a month later, many say the move has caused a number of inconveniences - especially for civilians who used the road to commute to work.
Karen Horstmann, a counselor at Swansboro High School, said she feels the effects daily. The drive through Jacksonville, she says, is stressful; and the rising cost of gas is putting a dent in her wallet.
It has led her to request to be transferred to a new job location.
"It's a tough decision - whether I want to deal with more stress during the day or leave the kids and families I've had close relationships with," she said. "I work at least 10 hours a day anyway and with the extra commute and extra mileage it is getting difficult."
When the close was first announced, base officials said the new route around the city would add nine to 10 minutes to the average commute. However Horstmann, who commutes from Topsail Island, said the new journey adds about 45 minutes of driving to her day. And when a bridge along N.C. 210 is closed later this year for repairs that drive will increase again.
Horstmann is one of many who have suggested the base offer civilians a commuter pass.
But the base is standing firm on its decision and says that for now, a commuter pass is not an option. The road is closed to the public indefinitely, according to spokesman 2nd Lt. Craig Thomas.
"Nobody likes change, but we need the general public to realize why it's changed," he said. "These changes are for a positive reason. We need control over who comes on and off the base, because we're in charge of keeping this base and its families safe."
North Topsail Beach resident Thomas Leonard said the closing of N.C. 172 to civilians has long been necessary.
"I understand why it had to be done," he said. "Essentially from my viewpoint after 9/11 things changed. I look at the closure of the road as something similar to having to take your shoes off and go through a metal detector when you get on an airplane. It's a precaution."
With a state highway running through the middle of the base, anyone could breach security and do "essentially what Timothy McVeigh did," Leonard said. While it may be an inconvenience to drive through Jacksonville to get to work, he said people should be willing to make a "personal sacrifice."
"We've got Marines who are making sacrifices every day who are coming home, many of them wounded and will never be the same," he said. "Their sacrifices go way beyond a slight inconvenience of someone having to detour around Onslow County."
Sneads Ferry resident Rickey Duck, who used the route daily to commute to work, thinks there should be some kind of middle ground on the issue.
"Contractors on base get their background checks done elsewhere, and I'd be willing to do that," he said. "I can also prove that I live in Sneads Ferry and my income comes from Swansboro."
The route adds more than 14 miles to his commute and takes 20 to 45 minutes more each way, depending on if he gets caught in rush-hour traffic from the base, Duck said.
"Gas is going up every day, and it costs me more every day," he said. "It is a financial hardship not being able to use that shortcut."
Sneads Ferry resident Steve Lambert said the change has caused hardship on local businesses, too.
"It just shuts us off from a lot of business we used to get from Hubert, and I'm sure it goes the other way," he said. "I understand there is a security issue if people turn off N.C. 172. But there are more than enough Marines on base that, I'm sure, they could set up posts on the intersections."
Contact staff writer Chrissy Vick at cvick@freedomenc.com or by calling 353-1171, ext. 8466.
Ellie
Motorists still express N.C. 172 inconveniences a month after base move
CHRISSY VICK
DAILY NEWS STAFF
When Camp Lejeune began restricting access along N.C. 172, it caused an outcry within the civilian community.
Vehicles without a Department of Defense decal are no longer allowed to cut through the base using the state highway, a popular shortcut connecting Sneads Ferry to Hubert.
Now, a month later, many say the move has caused a number of inconveniences - especially for civilians who used the road to commute to work.
Karen Horstmann, a counselor at Swansboro High School, said she feels the effects daily. The drive through Jacksonville, she says, is stressful; and the rising cost of gas is putting a dent in her wallet.
It has led her to request to be transferred to a new job location.
"It's a tough decision - whether I want to deal with more stress during the day or leave the kids and families I've had close relationships with," she said. "I work at least 10 hours a day anyway and with the extra commute and extra mileage it is getting difficult."
When the close was first announced, base officials said the new route around the city would add nine to 10 minutes to the average commute. However Horstmann, who commutes from Topsail Island, said the new journey adds about 45 minutes of driving to her day. And when a bridge along N.C. 210 is closed later this year for repairs that drive will increase again.
Horstmann is one of many who have suggested the base offer civilians a commuter pass.
But the base is standing firm on its decision and says that for now, a commuter pass is not an option. The road is closed to the public indefinitely, according to spokesman 2nd Lt. Craig Thomas.
"Nobody likes change, but we need the general public to realize why it's changed," he said. "These changes are for a positive reason. We need control over who comes on and off the base, because we're in charge of keeping this base and its families safe."
North Topsail Beach resident Thomas Leonard said the closing of N.C. 172 to civilians has long been necessary.
"I understand why it had to be done," he said. "Essentially from my viewpoint after 9/11 things changed. I look at the closure of the road as something similar to having to take your shoes off and go through a metal detector when you get on an airplane. It's a precaution."
With a state highway running through the middle of the base, anyone could breach security and do "essentially what Timothy McVeigh did," Leonard said. While it may be an inconvenience to drive through Jacksonville to get to work, he said people should be willing to make a "personal sacrifice."
"We've got Marines who are making sacrifices every day who are coming home, many of them wounded and will never be the same," he said. "Their sacrifices go way beyond a slight inconvenience of someone having to detour around Onslow County."
Sneads Ferry resident Rickey Duck, who used the route daily to commute to work, thinks there should be some kind of middle ground on the issue.
"Contractors on base get their background checks done elsewhere, and I'd be willing to do that," he said. "I can also prove that I live in Sneads Ferry and my income comes from Swansboro."
The route adds more than 14 miles to his commute and takes 20 to 45 minutes more each way, depending on if he gets caught in rush-hour traffic from the base, Duck said.
"Gas is going up every day, and it costs me more every day," he said. "It is a financial hardship not being able to use that shortcut."
Sneads Ferry resident Steve Lambert said the change has caused hardship on local businesses, too.
"It just shuts us off from a lot of business we used to get from Hubert, and I'm sure it goes the other way," he said. "I understand there is a security issue if people turn off N.C. 172. But there are more than enough Marines on base that, I'm sure, they could set up posts on the intersections."
Contact staff writer Chrissy Vick at cvick@freedomenc.com or by calling 353-1171, ext. 8466.
Ellie