MARLBORO – State Assemblyman Michael Panter (D-Monmouth and Mercer) and Marlboro Township Council President Jeff Cantor met with representatives of the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) on Oct. 26 to continue a discussion of noise issues along the Route 18 corridor in the municipality.
“The meeting was very productive,” Cantor said, thanking Panter for arranging the sit-down with the DOT.
“Marlboro residents who live near Route 18 have been experiencing the highway noise every day and deserve a solution to this problem. By working with the DOT and the township, I hope to find a solution that will alleviate as much of that noise as possible,” Panter said.
Representatives from the DOT were present including, Assistant DOT Commissioner Sharon Shinkle Gardner, Assistant DOT Commissioner Rick Hammer, the DOT Commissioner’s Chief of Staff Jennifer Godoski, David Earl, of the DOT Office of Landscape and Urban Design, Elkins Green, director of the DOT’s Division of Environmental Resources and Context Sensitive Solutions, and Ben Neville, DOT Legislative Liaison.
Marlboro’s township engineer, James Priolo, was also present.
The issue of Route 18 noise had been discussed at a public forum in Marlboro several weeks prior to the meeting in Trenton with the DOT representatives.
Cantor brought up Marlboro’s ordinance that prohibits trucks from using engine brakes on Route 18. The Township Council adopted the ordinance but was not granted permission by the state to post signs about the ordinance on Route 18, a state highway.
Cantor was instructed at the meeting to notify the DOT of where along the highway the engine braking signs would be placed. Once the locations are approved the signs may go up.
On another item, Cantor said there is no hope for a noise barrier wall to be constructed on Route 18 to separate the highway from nearby homes. The DOT representatives expressed that the department is strapped for money and there is no way to have the noise barrier built.
According to a press release from Panter’s office, the DOT representatives said the department is phasing out sound barriers on any road. The sound barriers were said to cost an estimated $5 million per mile.
Currently there are six municipalities on a waiting list for sound barriers, some of which have been waiting for 10 years, according to the press release. The press release stated that the DOT said the municipalities on the list may not receive sound barriers since the agency is trying to phase out those structures.
“Although the DOT said sound barriers cannot be constructed, I am confident the other suggestions discussed at the meeting will alleviate much of the problem, which disturbs residents in that area on a daily basis. We discussed several immediate proactive solutions and others that will take more time to implement,” Panter said.
The other suggestions included plantings to go in along the highway to diminish the line of sight from residents’ homes to Route 18.
Cantor said the plantings might begin to be made within a matter of weeks.
It was also agreed that Marlboro would be bumped up on a list of planned repaving for Route 18, Cantor said.
As early as 2011, DOT officials will be rolling out a repaving program that includes new technology that will reduce noise on the highway. DOT officials said they would have data regarding this technology in the coming months, according to the press release.
Cantor said the department would look into the possibility of reducing the speed limit on Route 18 from 65 mph to 55 mph after residents suggested it at the Sept. 27 public forum.
DOT representatives said the only reason highway speed limits are reduced is due to safety concerns and said they have to examine accident rates on the highway before moving forward with that particular initiative.
It was noted that it is not possible to allow trucks north of exit 105 on the Garden State Parkway – which was another suggestion that was made at the Marlboro public forum – because the bridge overpasses north of that exit are too low for trucks to pass under, Cantor reported.
“I appreciate the patience of Marlboro residents who have been dealing with this problem for years. I am confident the initiatives discussed today will provide residents with the relief they have been waiting for,” Panter said.
“I’m going to continue to fight for the residents of Marlboro,” Cantor said.