Township Committee OKs bridge and road projects
By: Victoria Hurley-Schubert – Staff Writer
Several roadway improvement projects were approved at the Township Committee’s Monday meeting. A bridge on Quaker Road in the Princeton Battlefield Stony Brook Village Historic District will be replaced to address safety concerns. The bridge, which crosses the Stony Brook and was installed in 1942, will be replaced with a new, wider concrete bridge with two 12-foot lanes with two four-foot shoulders and a six-foot wide sidewalk on the northbound approach. The existing bridge is only 24 feet wide with no sidewalks.
"The superstructure of the bridge is in poor condition," said Pete Daly, Mercer County spokesperson. "The rebars have significant section loss, which is the support of the bridge." Rebars are steel supports within the concrete of the bridge, which are beginning to fail. The cost to replace the bridge is $1.6 million and will take about 8 months. Construction will begin in a few months after preliminary work is finished and a detour route is established.
Even though it is not a historic bridge, the Princeton Township Historic Preservation Commission unanimously endorsed the bridge replacement at its Aug. 9 meeting.
Elsewhere in the township, the length of Princeton-Kingston Road will become a "no passing zone." The designation will be added on Route 27 from Locust Lane to Snowden Lane, as recommended by the Department of Transportation earlier this year.
"It will improve safety in the residential area, especially with a school nearby," said Patrolman Matt Solovay of the Township Police Department.
The township also officially supported the installation of bicycle lanes on Washington Road between Faculty Road and Route 1 in West Windsor. The Princeton Joint Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee is urging Mercer County to take the final step and designate the Washington Road shoulder as a bicycle lane with appropriate signage and the West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance is prepared to pay for bicycle-related signage.
"Anything that keeps cyclists to the side of the road is an improvement to safety," said Patrolman Solovay. "Washington is a major thoroughfare and Princeton is popular for cyclists they enjoy the terrain and the views."
The final improvement project approved Monday night was the resurfacing of Province Line Road, which serves as a boundary between the township and Lawrenceville. The township will be responsible for 25 percent, or $70,000, of the $280,000 total cost of the project.
"Province Line is in much need of repair," said Patrolman Solovay. "There is roadway deterioration, pot holes and collapsing (on the edges of road) due to culverts," which are safety concerns.