The recent fatalities from a crash at the intersection of Amboy, Disbrow and Lambertson roads have some Old Bridge officials eager to alleviate dangerous traffic patterns there.
Police Chief Thomas Collow said he and his force have been taking action to make the intersection safer for motorists.
“We are there,” Collow said. “We will be there for a while.”
A township couple died as the result of a Jan. 25 accident at the intersection. John Razillard, 19, was making a left in his Chrysler 300M from Disbrow Road onto Amboy Road when a GMC Jimmy truck driven by 17-year-old Cody Daily, also of Old Bridge, crashed into the vehicle in which Razillard and his fiancée, Jennifer Dooley, were traveling.
Razillard was pronounced dead at the scene. Dooley was taken to Raritan Bay Medical Center, Old Bridge division, where she died later that night. Daily received minor injuries.
Soon after, police stepped up their coverage of the intersection, employing a radar trailer, as well as officers to thwart speeders and others driving carelessly. During a February meeting, township Councilman Brian Cahill pressed for a traffic light at the spot he considers perilous.
“I just don’t want to see another tragedy happen,” Cahill said at the time.
Since then, Collow has worked with the police traffic and safety division to eradicate problems at the intersection. On Amboy Road alone, 34 speeding summonses have been issued since the accident. A streetlight has been replaced to increase visibility, and Collow said police are working with the township’s engineering department to consider other solutions.
The process of getting a traffic light installed can take several years. In one recent case, however, Councilman Reggie Butler conducted research with the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) and found that the procedure can be expedited when the signal’s installation is considered an emergency.
Thanks to efforts by Butler andMayor Jim Phillips, officials are expecting a light to be installed within six months at Spring Hill Road and Route 34, where 17- year-old township residentAshley Barton died after a September 2006 crash.
The president of Rambling Knolls, a housing development on Disbrow Road, opposed the concept of a traffic signal near the development. The resident said at a February meeting that the light could cause traffic problems on Disbrow Road.
According to Collow, there have been 14 accidents at the intersection ofAmboy, Disbrow and Lambertson roads over the past five years.
“I don’t know if that number is high enough or significant enough to warrant a four-way stop,” Collow said.
Though Cahill admitted he had no statistical evidence to support his feelings about the intersection, he said that in recent times he has witnessed several close calls as he drove near there.
“I still maintain that it’s a pretty dangerous intersection,” Cahill said.
Cahill’s concerns stem from a lack of visibility for vehicles coming over the hill that precedes the intersection on Amboy Road, as well as the problem of speeding on the road, which has a speed limit of 40 mph, he said last month.
Councilman Bill Baker asked if there was anything else that could be done to help the issue without having to conduct traffic and engineering studies, which are costly and time-consuming.
“Is there anything we can do tomorrow?” Baker asked Collow.
One thing that can be done, Collow said, is the painting of the speed limit on the road itself, a practice that helps to remind motorists to slow down. Though Collow was not making any promises for the following day, he said the action is feasible for completion by the time of the next council meeting, which is scheduled for April 7.
“I’ll do everything in my power to get it done,” Collow said.