Planning Underway for Route 35 Repaving Project Next Year
By John Burton
RED BANK – The state Department of Transportation commissioner’s recent visit here was a chance for a first hand look at some of the borough’s pedestrian and traffic trouble spots.
State Sen. Jennifer Beck (R-11), who represents the borough as well as living here, played host for DOT Commissioner Richard Hammer as he took a tour of Red Bank and other locations in the 11th Legislative District on April 7.
The DOT is putting the final details in place for a planned repaving and renovation project for state Highway 35, intended from Ocean Township to the Coopers Bridge intersection at the Red Bank/Middletown border. Given that project, “This is critically important that we have his team and him, Commissioner Richard Hammer, to see the locations where we’re having the most issues,” to correct them, hopefully in connection with that repaving project, said Beck.
The repaving project is expected to commence in spring 2017, according to DOT spokesman Kevin Israel.
Hammer and DOT representatives joined Beck and Borough Administrator Stanley Sickels as they inspected such locations as Maple Avenue, which is an extension of Highway 35 that runs directly through the borough’s commercial district. Complicating matters for the thoroughfare, Beck pointed out, is the Community YMCA, and the borough’s charter school, as well as a public school and St. James Elementary School and Red Bank Catholic high school are all within walking distance, each having its large young population competing with motorists to cross the roadway. The DOT had installed additional pedestrian protections such as flashing lights and more signs in recent years. But, “We’re looking to do further improvements,” there, Beck said.
Other problem spots reviewed were a crosswalk on Riverside Avenue, in the vicinity of Maple Avenue and West Front Street, located by the City Centre shopping plaza. That location, another extension of Highway 35, has been problematic, officials have long said, because it is regularly used by senior citizens living in adult complexes in the area as the slight “S” turn leading up to it, can have motorists unaware of pedestrians looking to cross. “There are a lot of challenges with it,” the senator acknowledged.
“People are going to cross there,” Sickels stressed, “because it is the closest (crosswalk) to their destination,” as they look to visit retail locations at the shopping center or make their way to the downtown. “It’s dangerous all the way around.”
“If they’re going to cross there at least we can maximize the level of pedestrian protection,” Sickels continued, explaining borough officials would like to see protections similar to those installed on Maple Avenue and East Front Street in the area of Riverview Medical Center.
“It is probably one of the most complex issues we have to deal with,” Beck offered, calling that crosswalk area “incredibly dangerous.”
DOT engineers are “struggling to answer that,” Beck said of that spot.
Another longstanding dangerous spot is north on Riverside Avenue, at the Bodman Place intersection. Vehicles looking to turn on to the heavily traveled Riverside Avenue have to cross up to four lanes of moving traffic. Local officials have long sought a traffic light at that intersection. State transportation officials, however, have long ignored the request, because of the traffic light the Coopers Bridge intersection just north of the site.
State traffic officials rely “on a textbook on how to handle these things,” Sickels said. “What we pointed out is this is not the textbook. You don’t have this scenario in your textbook…This is a very unusual circumstance.”
As a case in point, Beck and Sickels showed Hammer the White/Water streets/Maple Avenue signaled intersection, the DOT had agreed to install some years back, which is a brief distance from the Maple/West Front Street traffic signal, Sickels explained.
The Red Bank Borough Council last year had passed a resolution in support of seeking a traffic signal for that location.
“We had a very productive meeting with Sen. Beck and officials from her district,” Hammer said in an email response to a request for comment. “They voiced concerns about a number of issues and the Department is looking into those to determine the feasibility of the requested resolutions. As soon as we gave a determination we will be in touch with the towns and the Senator’s office.”
This was identical to the tour and conversation with Hammer’s predecessor, Jamie Fox, Sickels said. But the administrator noted “He (Hammer) seemed to understand the situation. He seemed receptive to our concerns.”
Along with touring Red Bank, Hammer joined Beck in reviewing other locations in her district that remain troublesome. They inspected and discussed pedestrian safety for a portion of state Highway 33; the state Highway 34/county Route 537 intersection in Colts Neck; and beautification plans for Highway 35 in Ocean.
