River Road, located in the Old Town section of East Brunswick, has been a problem for the residents in the area for too many years. Homeowners have been complaining that trucks using the road cause house vibration, noise and real fear that a truck could go through one’s yard, or worse, into one’s home.
These concerns are well founded. The road in question is only 22 feet wide, telephone poles are placed 12-16 inches from the road edges, there is no road shoulder and fronts of homes are only 10 feet from the road. More frightening is that front yards, in which children are playing, are only 2-3 feet from a road over which trucks carry asphalt.
Why is there a problem? The answer is because this road was given over by East Brunswick Township to Middlesex County and was designated a county road. Since River Road became a county road, trucks cannot be banned from it. Residents in the area deserve real consideration and should not be expected to live under these adverse conditions. I called the state Department of Transportation and was informed that any attempt to ban trucks from a county road is an exercise in futility. Why don’t East Brunswick officials fight to take the road back from the county? Go to court and tell an impartial judge what’s happening to longtime residents. Trucks could be restricted from a residential road.
I hope the administration will work to solve this problem soon for the health and welfare of the residents.
Frank J. Coury
East Brunswick