Improvements are aimed for Groveville Road in Bordentown Township after it was recently announced that the municipality received grant monies for roadway resurfacing.
Bordentown Township officials released a Dec. 9 announcement that the municipality was awarded a grant from the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) for a resurface project on Groveville Road. The DOT grant money totaled $244,000.
“We are proud to receive this grant from DOT,” Bordentown Township Mayor Stephen Benowitz said in a statement. “Thanks to the diligence and hard work of our professionals and staff – specifically Bordentown Township Engineer Fred Turek – the township has taken advantage of significant grant funding from the state to help improve our roadways.”
Township officials said that the grant is intended to cover the re-paving and striping of Groveville Road from Route 206 to Route 130 and the installment of new pedestrian crosswalks. One crosswalk will be slotted at the entrance to Northern Community Park, and the other crosswalk is planned at the intersection of Klein Drive and Groveville Road, according to officials.
The crosswalk at Klein Drive and Groveville Road will be lit and have crossway signals/flashing beacons installed as a measure of pedestrian safety for township residents and visitors, officials said. The Northern Community Park crosswalk construction will include striping, paining and the installment of ramps, according to officials.
The aimed improvements for the crosswalks at these sites come as part of a large-scale pedestrian safety initiative the township enacted in October last year. In an effort to stymie potential accidents involving pedestrians along Route 130 in the township, the Bordentown Township and City police departments teamed up along with the municipalities and state officials to increase awareness and education for pedestrian safety as part of a “Street Smart NJ” campaign.
Known to many as “the most dangerous New Jersey road for pedestrians,” officials said Route 130 was a major reason for the pedestrian safety campaign. The state-wide outreach program was intended to educate both pedestrians and motorists to “Check Your Vital Signs” to improve road safety.
Motorists were advised to obey the speed limit and stop for pedestrians in crosswalks. Pedestrians, in turn, are told to use crosswalks and wait for the walk-signal where applicable. A new “Heads Up, Phone Down” message has been implemented as well to combat distracted driving and walking.
Funding for the initiative came from a $12,000 Pedestrian Safety and Education Grant from the state Division of Highway Traffic Safety. Along with additional signage, the township police conducted pedestrian safety enforcement operations at problem crosswalk and intersection areas. The department also partnered with Cross County Connection to assist with education, outreach and campaign materials, and identifying areas where pedestrian crosswalks and signs should be installed.
Additionally, educational pedestrian safety assemblies were scheduled throughout the campaign at Bordentown Middle School and the Bordentown Township Senior Center. The police also partnered with all 12 area hotel owners, who agreed to display pedestrian safety posters and distribute pedestrian safety handouts to all their guests upon check-in.
For the past two years, officials said the township received approximately $1 million in DOT grants, which have been allocated toward projects such as the re-paving of Dunns Mill Road and Ward Avenue, the construction of a new bike path, and other township improvement projects.
Township officials announced on May 10 that the municipality was awarded a $252,000 grant from the DOT for road surfacing work on Ward Avenue, and the township committee also approved engineering services for the road at a June 24 committee meeting in addition to the grant.
Officials said the grant for the Ward Avenue road improvements received in May in addition to an earlier grant the municipality had applied for totaled approximately $500,000 for the project.
Given the influx of pedestrian traffic along Ward Avenue, municipal officials said they were committed to “making sure the road is equipped with safety measures once project is complete.”
Since Bordentown Regional High School and Peter Muschal School are located on Ward Avenue, municipal officials explained that they felt it was necessary to do more than repaving along the road. Officials said the project is planned to include road resurfacing and pedestrian safety measures such as crosswalks and sidewalks in the area of the schools as well.
Officials said the Groveville Road resurfacing project has an aimed completion date for the winter of 2020.