Published June 28. 2023 10:08AM

Newton’s Third Law nails it: “For every action in nature, there is an equal and opposite reaction.”

Since Sir Isaac Newton died in 1727, he obviously didn’t have the Jim Thorpe weekend traffic problems in mind, but his Third Law applies nonetheless.

When traffic out of the Carbon County-owned parking lot on Route 209 in the borough was required to turn right only on weekends because left turns added to the incredibly long traffic delays, it may have helped solve one problem, but for Lehighton downtown businesses, it has created another.

You can imagine that these business owners are none too happy about traffic being directed away from Lehighton, and they let their feelings be known to the county commissioners.

Although sympathetic, the commissioners deflected the criticism, saying that the change needs to be addressed with Jim Thorpe borough officials and representatives of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation since Route 209 is a state highway.

For anyone unfamiliar with what’s going on, Jim Thorpe has become a tourist Mecca for thousands of visitors each year. It is now one of Pennsylvania’s top tourist attractions, drawing visitors from many states. Things really get dicey starting with the arrival of warmer weather and culminates with fall foliage in October.

Some joke that getting a convenient parking spot in Jim Thorpe during these prime-time weekends costs generally the equivalent of your first-born. The county-owned parking lot is extremely popular and sensibly priced, so it is coveted and desirable because of its proximity to the downtown stores, attractions and activities. For those wanting to ride the ultra-popular train excursion, for example, the lot is right there along the tracks and next to the station where passengers get tickets.

Most of these vehicles snaking along two-lane Route 209 make negotiating the several-block gauntlet problematic even on a good day. The traffic light at Broadway and Route 209, while, of course mandatory, also is what slows down traffic.

Before the “right turn only” out of the county parking lot was mandated, many vehicles preferred to turn left toward Lehighton, adding to the bottleneck and making already patience-thin drivers even angrier. Most of those wanting to turn left relied on the good will of creeping northbound drivers to let them in line.

Enter Sir Isaac Newton. The “right turn only” was the action that created the opposite reaction among downtown Lehighton business-owners, who claim motorists are now finding alternate routes that do not include Lehighton, and it’s really hurting their business, especially on busy summer weekends when they should be cashing in on the traffic volume.

So what’s the answer? Remembering that I am not an engineer, only a purveyor of opinion, but it seems to me that a traffic light activated at super busy times is needed at the intersection of the county parking lot and Route 209. With technology as it is today, I am sure the light can be regulated to flash caution on Route 209 during normal travel times – let’s say during the week – and red for those exiting the parking lot. During the busy weekends, there would be a proportionately longer green for Route 209 motorists, but the light would allow traffic exiting the county lot to turn either left or right without the former bottleneck or at least less of one.

What is a required as a first step, however, is for the three entities – county, borough and PennDOT representatives – to sit down and discuss how this will all come together and be resolved to most everyone’s satisfaction. Whatever resolution is proposed, let’s not forget the prophetic words of English monk and poet John Lydgate who once famously said, “You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.”

By BRUCE FRASSINELLI| tneditor@tnonline.com

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.