The Gemara says residents in an alley can't stop people from the main street who have been accustomed to using the alley as a short cut.
My question concerns a change in circumstances. At first, the residents did not object because there were few people passing through and those who did pass through did not make trouble. Later on there was an increase in the number of people and some of them began dirtying the alley, causing damages, and making trouble.
Under the changed circumstances can the residents of the alley put up a door or close off the alley?
Avrohom Zvi Elias, Haifa, Israel
Before dealing with your specific question, allow me to clarify that the Halachah is that "Metzar she'Hichziku Bo Rabim" only applies where the individuals had been given permission to use the area in the first place.
The Sema (Choshen Mishpat 377) writes that when the permission was originally granted to a specific group of people (residents of a certain street or neighborhood, for example), other groups have no right to use the area and the owner may protest their use. However, he may not stop the group which has earned the rights to its use.
D. Zupnik