Wawa relocation plan should help traffic flow, experts say

Montgomery board begins hearing on proposal opposed by Rocky Hill officials

By: Jake Uitti
   MONTGOMERY — The proposed relocation of Wawa from the corner of routes 518 and 206 to a site 550 feet east on Route 518 should improve traffic safety around the intersection, both township and Wawa traffic experts agreed during a Planning Board hearing on the application Monday.
   The Wawa would be located near the Rocky Hill border, and officials there have voiced strong concerns regarding the application, in particular the impact on the borough’s wells.
   During Monday’s meeting, Kenneth Fears, a traffic expert hired by Wawa, argued that since the exit for the convenience store would be 550 feet farther away from the intersection, there would be fewer accidents near the site. The township’s traffic consultant, John Rae, agreed with that conclusion.
   Since the site would be moved, Mr. Rae said, there would be fewer times during the day when the exit would be blocked by a line of cars — thus allowing for better visibility and access coming in and out of the store. Moreover, Mr. Rae said, with the new plan, traffic congestion coming from Rocky Hill on Route 518 will be alleviated.
   Furthermore, Route 518 will be "re-striped," Mr. Fears said. A left-hand turn lane will be added for the turn into Wawa for east-bound traffic, eliminating one of the two west-bound lanes, which was the site of many accidents.
   The "easement" road Wawa has agreed to construct — which was already in the township’s Master Plan to be constructed when a new business took over the Princeton Gamma Tech site — connecting Route 518 to the Montgomery Shopping Center, will be a one-way road, allowing traffic only to go into the shopping center. This, Mr. Fears said, would decrease the number of cars traveling through the Route 518 intersection with Route 206, as well as allow for easier access for freight trucks.
   Planning Board Chairman Steven Sacks-Wilner said traffic experts told him the easement road would "reduce wait time at the traffic light to 40 seconds," even at rush hour.
   There are also plans to construct a second easement road, to go between the present Wawa site and the proposed site, to help ease traffic flow. This second road would eliminate the need for the driveway at the existing Wawa, which lets cars out on Route 206 close to the traffic light.
   Wawa’s plan also calls for the addition of 12 gasoline pumps, which had been a goal of Wawa’s for the past four years, said Ken Muller, the company’s senior real-estate manager.
   Rocky Hill Mayor George Morren, one of the objectors to Wawa’s plan, said in a statement before the hearing, "The Wawa plan does more than ‘irk’ Rocky Hill. The proposed 12-bay gas station threatens our drinking water. … The fact that this development is on the site of a business that polluted our well 30 years ago shows that any spill would migrate to our water supply."
   After the meeting, Mayor Morren said he was "confident" the Montgomery Planning Board would seriously consider some of Rocky Hill’s concerns. The board agreed to the requirement of a "one-way easement, higher fences and more buffering vegetation," Mayor Morren said.
   New Jersey code mandates that underground tanks be at least 50 feet from community public water wells. The tanks on the proposed Wawa site are 315 feet from the closest well, said Mark Whitaker of Sovereign Consulting Inc. of Washington Township, representing Wawa.
   Mr. Whitaker said the tanks are still within "Tier 1" of the wellhead protection area defined by the state, a 2,000-foot radius surrounding a community well, and because of that, several restrictions are required.
   Wawa must install double-walled tanks and secondary containment for underground piping and leak detectors, and must conduct periodic tests of the piping, Mr. Whitaker explained.
   Wawa employees will not be allowed to change any automobile fluids on site, nor would Wawa’s customers be allowed to change fluids, Mr. Muller said.
   Mr. Sacks-Wilner said these measures would be sufficient to protect the area.
   "That’s what they are designed to do," he said. The state Department of Environmental Protection, he said, "came up with those rules for that very reason, so that they could guard against groundwater pollution."
   The double walls are made of two layers of "heavy-duty" fiberglass, Mr. Sacks-Wilner continued, and between is a layer of solution. If anything gets through either wall into the solution, "it will set off all kinds of alarms."
   Should a leak occur and contaminate the soil, Wawa would have to pay the excavation costs, as well as the costs of incinerating the contaminated soil, at a possible price tag of $1 million, he said, pointing out that it is in the company’s interest to make sure no leakage occurs.
   Bill O’Brien, a Rocky Hill resident whose home abuts the proposed Wawa site, said after the meeting he does not want the increase in traffic and construction in his backyard.
   "I am outraged," Mr. O’Brien said, "that Wawa has the audacity to put a gas station-convenience store next to a residential neighborhood with children and families. The Planning Board is responsible for approving applications consistent with … the general welfare of the town," he said, citing Wawa’s 24-hour operation and proposed parking for 50 cars.
   Wawa’s application to the Planning Board did not seek any variances — meaning it conforms to township requirements.
   "When you have a conforming application," Mr. Sacks-Wilner said, "you have no grounds to deny it. If you deny it, they can take you to court. And they will win."
   Sarah Roberts, a member of the Montgomery Planning Board, agreed.
   "You can’t just pick and choose. … As long as it is a permitted use," you have to accept it, Ms. Roberts said. "All we can do is make some accommodations to minimize the impact on" the neighbors.
   The hearing, which was devoted entirely to Wawa, lasted until 11 p.m., with more testimony scheduled at the board’s Jan. 30 session, which also will be devoted entirely to the Wawa application.