Letters: I live in Rocky Point. This is why I support the Loop Road Project.

You know how frustrating it is for residents who live on North Upper Truckee, Sawmill, and countless other ‘shortcut’ streets during holidays when everyone is trying to leave town on their roads, usually driving too fast, backing up traffic, and not showing much respect for the people who live there?

That’s my life every day.

I live on Chonokis in Rocky Point. It’s the unofficial Loop Road, and it’s not just used by locals. People have been using my street as a bypass for years, usually driving too fast and not showing respect for the folks that live there. Except we don’t get the option of a road closure, as recently happened for July 4th.

The simple act of backing out of my driveway is complicated by cars not slowing down or letting me out. I have a neighbor whose back fence must be replaced every year because some careless driver crashed into it. And yes, like the residents on North Upper Truckee, Sawmill, and other ‘shortcut’ streets, we see our share of traffic jams, too. Don’t believe me? I have video footage dating back 21 years that shows traffic, speeding, and even buses using our street as a shortcut. It’s as bad as the video I took this July 4th.

That’s why I support the proposed US 50 realignment.

People who argue that there’s no need for a realignment don’t understand what our neighborhood has to live with. A realigned US 50 means our neighborhood can be a neighborhood and not a bypass. It means our children can play outside without fear of being creamed by a distracted driver. It means we don’t have to worry about replacing our back yard fence or bear box every year.

And it gives all that through traffic a true bypass, one that can support the volume without impacting locals as it does now.

- Steve Tancredy
Rocky Point Resident