Turnpike widening set for fall

Plans being mulled over for Turnpike expansion

By: Rebecca Tokarz
   Plans to widen the truck lanes on the N.J. Turnpike between Exit 9 and Exit 8A from two lanes to three lanes could begin in the fall.
   The project also calls for changes to the area where vehicles merge from three to two lanes. The project is designed to ease bottlenecking in the area.
   "The project will benefit motorists the most where people merge," N.J. Turnpike Authority spokesperson Joe Orlando said.
   Mr. Orlando said changes to the merge area have yet to be determined.
   The project calls for converting the road’s shoulder into a third lane on the north and southbound truck lanes. A new shoulder would then be built. In addition, sound barriers will be added to protect residential neighborhoods from noise.
   Construction on the project, which could cost approximately $15 million, will begin in the fall and will be completed in 2004. Public hearings on the project will be held prior to construction.
   Mr. Orlando said the construction will be made easier by the grading, drainage, lighting, design structures and bridges that were built in the 1980s with an eye toward future roadway expansion, said Mr. Orlando.
   With the addition of the third lane, the inner and outer roadway merge of the southbound lanes will need to be reconstructed, he said.
   "This will make for a much smoother transition instead of bottlenecking," Mr. Orlando said.
   The changes are necessary, Mr. Orlando said, because that portion of the highway, which stretches from mile marker 83.3 in East Brunswick to 73.7 in Monroe, has been problematic for commuters.
   From Jan 2001 through July 2002, there were 268 accidents at the section where traffic merges, 130 accidents on the section before the merge and 163 accidents on the three miles after the merge.
   Mayor Frank Gambatese is optimistic that reconstructing the merge will relieve the highway congestion that causes some commuters to exit at 8A and travel the back roads.
   "Hopefully this will reduce congestion between the two exits. I hear the traffic backup at 8A is something fierce. I am definitely for it," he said.