Traffic light approved for Province Line Road

County to place signal at Rosedale Road intersection.

By: Lea Kahn
   With some reluctance, Township Council endorsed the installation of a proposed traffic light at the intersection of Rosedale Road and Province Line Road last week.
   The traffic light would be installed by Mercer County sometime next year, said Mercer County Assistant Engineer Greg Sandusky. Rosedale Road is controlled by Mercer County. Province Line Road is a township street.
   The cost of the traffic light itself likely would be about $100,000, Mr. Sandusky said. The final tab will be more, because of the need to obtain rights-of-way from two property owners on the southeast corner of Rosedale and Province Line roads — one in Princeton Township and one in Lawrence Township.
   Princeton Township officials had been pushing for the traffic light for more than a year. Mercer County conducted a traffic count at the intersection last summer, and found that it met the state Department of Transportation’s criteria for installing a traffic light, Mr. Sandusky said.
   Mercer County did not want to proceed with plans for a traffic light until it had the endorsement of both townships, Mr. Sandusky said. Now that Lawrence has agreed to the traffic light, money for the project will be included in the 2004 capital budget, he said. The Mercer County Board of Chosen Freeholders must approve the capital budget.
   Mr. Sandusky said Princeton Township received approval for federal money for the traffic light installation, but Mercer County officials decided they would rather pay for the traffic light to avoid becoming snarled in the red tape that often accompanies federal grants.
   Lawrence Township officials agreed to the proposed traffic light, but it was done with some reluctance — mostly out of concern for the impact it would have on the Lawrence property owner who would be affected.
   Municipal Manager William Guhl, in a May 9 letter to Mercer County Engineer David Stem, wrote that Township Council is concerned that the installation of the traffic light should be accomplished "with the minimum possible impact on Lawrence property owners at that intersection."
   Mr. Guhl told Township Council at its May 6 meeting that the Educational Testing Service’s proposed expansion would generate more traffic and thus have an impact on the Rosedale Road and Province Line Road intersection. The Planning Board has not yet scheduled a public hearing on ETS’ application.
   Most Rosedale Road residents should like the traffic light, Mr. Guhl told the council. The traffic light would create gaps in the traffic, allowing them to more easily get in or out of their driveways, he said.
   While Mayor Greg Puliti said his worst fear is that an accident could occur and the township did nothing to encourage the installation of the traffic light. He said he was concerned about the township’s possible liability if that were to happen.
   But Councilman Rick Miller, who said he travels through that intersection frequently, said that in his opinion, "it’s not that bad."