By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
Motorists who travel on an approximately five-mile-long stretch of Route 130, between Maple Stream Road in East Windsor Township and extending into Robbinsville Township, are getting a smoother ride.
That’s because the Route 130 resurfacing project is one of many that have been included in $1.2 billion worth of road projects being funded by the Transportation Trust Fund in the New Jersey Department of Transportation.
Gov. Chris Christie toured the Route 130 project last week, and stopped at H&H Appliances on Route 130 to tout the amount of money and projects that are under way at a press conference in the parking lot of the appliance store.
Emerging from a black Chevrolet Suburban sport utility vehicle, Gov. Christie stopped to shake hands with some of the NJDOT construction crew members. The men were standing in front of two NJDOT trucks that served as a backdrop for the governor’s press conference.
"These improvements are going to enhance the ride quality for the (thousands of motorists) who ride (Route 130)," Gov. Christie said, as cars and trucks whizzed past. The northbound and southbound lanes are being improved.
Overall, Gov. Christie said, the value of the projects under way during Fiscal Year 2017, which began July 1, 2017 and ends June 30, 2018, is $1.2 billion – breaking the previous record of $1.1 billion in Fiscal Year 2013.
This marks the first year of an eight-year Transportation Trust Fund program that has increased to $2 billion per year in state funds – and $4 billion, if federal funds are included, Gov. Christie said.
"Residents are starting to see for themselves the work that is occurring throughout the state to enhance and improve our roads, our bridges and our mass transit operations," he said.
Gov. Christie said that when the state Transportation Trust Fund plan was signed in October 2016, following some wrangling over how to fund it after it ran out of money earlier in the years, "We promised the residents of New Jersey they would see their tax dollars at work immediately."
To make good on that promise, state lawmakers approved $400 million in supplemental funding for multiple projects starting in March that included $260 million to repair local roads and bridges in all 21 counties.
"Greater Transportation Trust Fund funding for county and municipal roadwork under our plan serves as direct property tax relief for homeowners and business owners," Gov. Christie said.
Money for the Transportation Trust Fund is coming from a 23-cent increase in the state gasoline tax. Voters approved dedicating the money raised by the increase in the gasoline tax to the Transportation Trust Fund.
