Roads less paved make rough rides

With apologies for massaging the opening lines of Robert Frost's famous poem, I offer a look at "The Roads Not Taken (Care Of)" ...

"Two roads diverged on an Island Long,

And sorry I had to travel both."

Many residents living east of the Long Island Expressway's Exit 64 are sorry the state Department of Transportation ran out of blacktop when it repaved Long Island's clogged artery.

We were encouraged when we saw road equipment east of where the HOV lane ends, but then white lines dashed the road, along with our hopes — concrete fill strips! Admittedly, the strips are an improvement and do, when we drive, preserve the nostalgic, rhythmic refrain of "Frosty the Snowman."

Frost, the nemesis blamed for winter's potholes: the freezing-expanding-cracking argument has as many holes as does the roadway in the rural portion of Route 25 from Splish Splash Water Park to the Route 25A split in Calverton, which has been in deplorable condition for years.

Within that stretch, the Route 25/Edwards Avenue intersection has been recently reworked. Except for a few hundred feet of newly paved approaches, though, the rest of Route 25 remains a cratered mess. Is New York State leasing it to NASA as a lunar rover proving ground?

If the state doesn't care about the folks heading to Splish Splash and points east, at least have compassion for the families of deceased East End veterans, as these relatives careen and jostle their way to Calverton National Cemetery.

So please,

"Pave the one less traveled by,

For that can make all the difference."

Colin Van Tuyl, Greenport