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State Invites Public To Tour Route 70 Traffic Headaches
By Catherine Galioto
The state is hoping residents pile onto a bus next week to explain the problem areas of Route 70 and the issues impacting the surrounding traffic.
The state Department of Transportation (DOT) is in the midst of figuring out how to improve the jammed Route 70, with officials saying they've been studying traffic patterns for several months now.
Seeking the public's input and feedback, the state will be conducting the upcoming bus tour of the area in the hopes of seeing firsthand what traffic areas are most in need of improvements. The tour is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. October 23 at the Brick Library on Chambers Bridge Road.
The township council announced the event, promising to send council members and township officials, and urged residents to pack the event. Officials said Route 70 traffic should get some relief, as the state confirmed its commitment to projects the township is pushing for. Earlier this month, the state sent money to the township in order to complete a restriping program in one of the worst intersections in town.
For months, if not years, the township has sought help on how to improve the major state road that sends tens of thousands of vehicles daily through its corridors: Route 70.
Councilman Joseph Sanjiovanni said things are looking up for potential improvements to the highway, despite the requirement that any Route 70 project must first attain state approval before any work can begin. Local officials have criticized the state for what they perceived as a low priority in improving the gridlocked road.
"What was originally a 10-year study is condensed into eight months," said Sanjiovanni. "This may seem slow but for the state, this is lightning speed."
Originally, the township council planned to pay upfront for improvements, totaling $2.2 million. The idea was that the township could put the wheels in motion faster than the state. However, after meetings with state officials, the township learned the state would help take on the project afterall.
In order to deal with the state and possibly handle projects on its own, the township has laid out a plan that breaks the project into several parts.
Specifically, the Route 70 intersections of Chambers Bridge Road, Cedar Bridge Road and Brick Boulevard need immediate help, officials said.
Because the township already pledged money upfront, Council President Stephen Acropolis believes that may have caught the state's attention.
"They know we're serious," he said.
In six breakout projects Acropolis explained late last year, the township hopes to focus on restriping, adding jughandles or traffic improvements, which would all be part of a plan to add new turning lanes and other traffic management tools.
Acropolis said the idea is to target the "missing mile" of Route 70, an area that has become notorious for its backlog of traffic, officials said.
The October 23 event will not simply focus on Route 70, but attempt to make sense of how surrounding roads interact with the state highway too.
"This is a good opportunity to see what the state wants to do," Acropolis said.
While he and other local officials took a similar tour of the highway with DOT staff members months ago, Township Administrator Scott Pezarras said this will be the first one organized for the public.
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