This video cracked me up

doodlesmom

Mon, Nov 06 2023, 11:46 pm

amother Lily wrote:

These marathons can be a real problem. They once had one going down my street, and my poor grandparents who were almost 90 years old needed to cross to get to the dentist. My grandfather needed to take a certain medicine before going to the dentist, so he took it at home and then they stood there trying to figure out how they could get across. The police actually did not allow anyone across except for when they saw a break between the runners. Since my grandparents were not fast walkers, they had to wait a long time to cross, and they got to the dentist extremely late.

I feel bad.
Tbh they should’ve rescheduled!
The dentist should’ve known it was the day of the marathon and not scheduled an elderly couple.
Live and learn.

amother

Junglegreen

Mon, Nov 06 2023, 11:46 pm

doodlesmom wrote:

I’m sure there’s a shul on their side of Bedford Ave?
They need to learn to cross running along with the marathon on an angle….

Thousands of people need to cross for various reasons. It makes no sense to shut such a busy avenue for hours on a Sunday. They really should change the route.

zaq

Mon, Nov 06 2023, 11:47 pm

singleagain wrote:

I don't run marathons. I don't live near marathons. I honestly don't know what the solution would be.

Building temporary bridges across those thoroughfares so pedestrians could cross in safety. But the cost would be prohibitive, and people would try to cross anyway rather than go to a bridge blocks out of the way. I'm sure motorists were even more displeased than pedestrians at the closing of bridges and roads.

amother

Junglegreen

Mon, Nov 06 2023, 11:50 pm

zaq wrote:

Changing the route is a simpler and cheaper solution.

doodlesmom

Mon, Nov 06 2023, 11:54 pm

amother Junglegreen wrote:

Thousands of people need to cross for various reasons. It makes no sense to shut such a busy avenue for hours on a Sunday. They really should change the route.

A Sunday is actually the only day they should do it if they need to choose a day of the week lol.
I personally am a fan of the marathon, and think it’s okay if people get a heads up and schedule to spend their day without needing to cross.

I know there are some urgent matters that are exception, but most probably aren’t.

Regarding school, they should probably give off that day, cheder maybe can start before and end after the marathon closures….

At 2 points in Williamsburg they can maybe set up a crossing like I described previously.

amother

Junglegreen

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 12:14 am

doodlesmom wrote:

People need to cross Bedford Avenue every day. It just doesn't make sense to block one of the busiest Avenue's and expect people to not need to cross. That just doesn't make sense. People will always have to cross. It's not a side street.
Bedford was still closed for traffic at 5 PM on Sunday. For what reason?

amother

Crimson

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 12:48 am

As a child we would go watch the marathon and find it hilarious when people had to cross the street.

I don’t live in Williamsburg anymore but watching this now I did not find it funny in any way.

It is extremely frustrating and annoying, I feel bad for all the men trying to get to shul and all the boys needing to get to cheder.

amother

Azure

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 2:32 am

amother Junglegreen wrote:

I live on Bedford ave in Willie. It's horrible having the marathon in front of your eyes for half a day. Don't pity the runners a bit. Good for all pedestrians that run along and get wherever they want. And why exactly was it still closed at 6pm? My daughter came running in saying that she saw a hatzulah member running on block with his heavy orange bag looking at every house to check for his called address. Why can't they at least have access?!

amother

Dandelion

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 2:59 am

amother Azure wrote:

This year it reopened at 7pm for what reason?? Its ridiculous! And closed off already at 8am!!!
Yes many elementary schools do have off but boys not.
Since Bedford is closed there is no transportation there you can see the fathers running across with the kids and carriages

amother

Lavender

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 10:12 am

amother Azure wrote:

I understand your frustration, but why don’t you pity the runners one bit? Is it their fault? They trained and Put in a lot of effort and work here….

Would it bother you if someone blocks the street for a hachnasas Sefer Torah and a bunch of people come to disturb it because they see no reason the street should be closed?

You can be upset at the situation, and have empathy!

amother

Junglegreen

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 10:30 am

amother Lavender wrote:

Oh please do not compare the marathon to a hachnasos sefer torah. When there's a hachnasos only the part of the street that they're walking on gets blocked & it gets reopened as they're walking. It's not blocked for the entire day.
OTOH, with the marathon, one of the busiest Avenues, that runs along basically the entire neighborhood, is blocked for the entire day. The entire Avenue, that runs through the entire neighborhood, is blocked for the entire day.
Can't compare to a hachnasos sefer torah where a little portion of the street is blocked for an hour or less. It doesn't effect the entire neighborhood.

qwerty4

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 11:31 am

I was watching a young man accompanying a elderly man with a walker, determined to cross Bedford to get to Rodney shul.
It was embarrassing. For one day, find a different alternative. If you can't run across skillfully, the way some of those people are, you don't cross Bedford for a few hours. It's not the end of the world.

qwerty4

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 11:33 am

There is only a very short window where you can't cross by foot because the traffic is too dense. For the rest of the day, the streets are closed for cleaning, but anyone can get across.

amother

Peony

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 11:42 am

amother Lavender wrote:

A marathon taking up a whole bunch of the most major roads and bridges is not the same as a hachnasas sefer Torah. The marathon is a huge imposition on the public. The bridges in particular are people's only way of going back and forth. Sure, people can plan around it, but they shouldn't have to.

amother

Lavender

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 11:50 am

amother Peony wrote:

And is it the runners fault? Does he deserve to be penalized for the closures?

I personally see this attitude a lot about the marathon in Williamsburg…
Ugh, they have nothing better to do with their life than run.
And foy, look at those subhumans running etc.

I for one have lots of respect for anyone running a marathon, it means they had a goal, worked hard for it and reached it.
And I think it’s great for the morale of a city.
With that in mind, while it is very inconvenient, I think it’s livable for once a year.

But maybe if you think the whole thing is just ridiculous and people doing it are weird, stupid, etc. then the inconvenience is not worth it at all.

amother

Junglegreen

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 11:52 am

qwerty4 wrote:

I disagree. People shouldn't have to find a different alternative. Especially the elderly. It's not a normal thing to block off one of the busiest streets in a very busy neighborhood.

amother

Junglegreen

Tue, Nov 07 2023, 11:53 am

amother Lavender wrote:

And is it the runners fault? Does he deserve to be penalized for the closures?

It's not the runners fault, but it's not the neighborhood's fault either.
If I need to get across, I will cross. That's just too bad.