By: Cara Latham
UPPER FREEHOLD In a standing-room-only meeting, filled with parents and their children, residents urged the Township Committee to look into placing restrictions on trucks that travel on Sharon Station Road.
Children at the Sept. 7 meeting wore shirts that said, "Mr. Mayor, do you care about our safety?" with a picture of a truck on the front and "The Forgotten Children of Upper Freehold" on the back, which seemed to be directed at Committeeman Bill Miscoski who serves as deputy mayor.
At a public hearing that night, the township passed an ordinance establishing a no-passing zone on the road pending approval from the commissioner of the state Department of Transportation, and then passed two resolutions also concerning the truck traffic issue.
The committee passed a motion to authorize Township Attorney Granville Magee and Township Engineer Glenn Gerken to meet with Township Administrator Barbara Bascom to determine what would have to be done to discuss alternate truck routes and what is necessary for the township to do in order to implement traffic regulations.
The no-passing zone begins at Route 526 and extends south to Route 539. Sharon Station Road connects Route 526 to Route 539, which then connects to Route 537.
Residents complained at previous meetings that truck traffic has been endangering their children, especially when they are waiting for the school bus. The township has been trying to transfer jurisdiction of the road to Monmouth County.
In response to residents’ concerns, the first resolution suspended work relating to the transfer of Upper Freehold’s jurisdiction of Sharon Station Road to Monmouth County pending the township attorney’s review of the local truck bans and to examine the township’s jurisdiction on local control of roadways.
Mr. Miscoski said he was concerned that for the past 30 years the township has tried to hand over jurisdiction of the road and the county has refused. The resolution would further discourage the county from taking over jurisdiction, he said.
"It only makes perfect sense that the county has this road," he said. "I’m just afraid when the county sees this resolution … the county will say, ‘Good, we don’t want this road anyway.’ "
Committeeman Stephen Alexander and Mayor Steve Fleischacker both said the resolution was intended to review the issue and make sure officials "completed their homework" on what, if anything, could be done to enforce regulations on the road.
Mr. Miscoski also called the second resolution to send a letter to local truck companies to voluntarily redirect their trucks away from the road from 6:30 to 9 a.m. and from 2:30 to 4 p.m. during the school year a "waste of paper."
"If you think that trucking companies are going to take four hours out of their eight hours a day to travel 45 minutes more that way, and 4½ gallons of fuel more that way, we’re all smoking something," he said. "You cannot stop an industry from doing their job. They’ve been doing their job on that road for the past 50 years."
During the public session, many residents supported the resolution to suspend the transfer of jurisdiction, but urged further action by township officials to regulate truck traffic on the road.
Kenneth Caitano, of Dutchess Drive, said that 30 years ago, the homes and children living on the road weren’t there, but that the road is now a mess because of the trucks that travel on the road.
"Please keep in mind that people need to be able to safely get from one development to another," he said. "Sharon Station Road is very strategic to the health, the safety and the prosperity of our township, and let’s be forward looking and really do your homework … and see what’s the best option for the community."
Patrick Nolan, also of Dutchess Drive, who said he spoke on behalf of the audience, read a prepared 15-minute presentation where he outlined solutions that the residents compiled.
Mr. Nolan listed incidents he said were caused by truck traffic on the road, including an accident at the intersection of Route 526 and Galloping Brook Road that resulted in a car in the backyard of residents on Alexander Road. Last year, a school bus entering Sharon Station Road was almost rear-ended by a dump truck, which had to swerve off the road into a nearby field to avoid a collision, he said.
Mr. Nolan said the residents presented their views to the Monmouth County freeholders, and that Freeholder Lillian Burry responded with a letter citing similar work that has been done in Colts Neck where she was a mayor, deputy mayor and committeewoman to alleviate a similar problem.
"If the committee has the power to control speed limits, set weight restrictions, and divert truck traffic, as a matter of public safety … would you be willing to keep the road under township control and assist us in enacting and enforcing laws which will prohibit the trucks on this road, as you have already done on other roads in this town?" Mr. Nolan asked the committee.
Mr. Nolan then outlined steps he said the township could consider.
The first would be to rescind a resolution to swap jurisdiction of the road to the county. The second would be to amend another ordinance that establishes restrictions of truck traffic between Route 526 and Herbert Road.
In amending the ordinance, township officials could reduce the weight limitations from 10 to 6 tons, provide an exception for school buses, add weight restrictions on Breza Road between Route 524 and Potts Road, and to alter the Sharon Station Road weight limitation segment to begin at Route 539 instead of Route 526, he said.
Then, the officials would have to vote on a resolution to request a traffic study completed by the state Department of Transportation, and to place weight restrictions on parts of Route 539, Sharon Station Road and Route 526, he said.
Mr. Nolan also said they could ask for the roads to be removed from the State Truck Network and request the county to place signs at the corner of routes 539 and 537 to redirect the trucks and buses over 6 tons.
"We do not wish to, in any way, harm trucking companies that provide a great service to our economy," Mr. Nolan said. "We merely ask them to accept a reasonable alternate route, traveling on wider roads that are better equipped with the facilities to service them. Please make the roads of our rural gem safer for those who have chosen to call this great town home."
However, Kenneth Giovanelli, a truck driver and owner of a local business, said he sees more problems with the car traffic than with the trucks. He said he recently took Sharon Station Road in his truck en route to a job in Hamilton, and that seven cars passed the double solid line to pass him, even though he was doing the speed limit.
"No guy is going to go around (Route) 537 (with) Great Adventure traffic, all (the) lights, and it’s going to take at least a half an hour," he said.
He said that he didn’t complain when trucks were traveling down the road and passing his house, causing it to shake, when they were working on the new housing development.
Members of the committee commended Mr. Nolan for his efforts in provided the detailed presentation.
In response to Mr. Nolan’s proposal, Tennant Magee, partner of Township Attorney Granville Magee, said the committee would have to authorize Township Engineer Gerken to prepare a report and then pass an ordinance based on his report. Then, the commissioner of the state DOT has to approve it, after examining public safety versus the expedition of traffic, including on highways, he said.
"The bottom line is the DOT has final say, and the bottom line of it as well is that there’s very little remedy if the DOT says no," he said.
During the committee’s responses to public comment, Committeeman Miscoski voiced his concern about the children’s T-shirts.
"My life has revolved around kids and the safety of kids kids with drug problems, kids with alcohol problems," he said. "My life revolves around kids. I’m just appalled that somebody would come up here and tell me that I don’t care about kids."
