Extra speed limit signs serve
to warn drivers on Broadway
FREEHOLD — Efforts are being made by municipal officials to try and help residents deal with motorists who enter the borough from Freehold Township on Route 79 (Broadway) and may not realize the speed limit drops from 45 to 30 mph.
Coming from Freehold Township, Broadway runs from the border of the two towns to Elks Point. The speed limit on that stretch is 30 mph.
This effort is a result of a law enforcement and Borough Council response to a complaint from a Broadway resident who appeared at a council meeting last fall to say that speeding cars on her street were posing a danger to everyone in the area.
When she addressed the council, Maureen Haley brought along the support of at least 40 of her neighbors in the form of a petition dated Sept. 1, 2002. Haley told council members that "cars were simply going way too fast on Broadway, endangering children walking to and from school and making life more difficult for the residents in the area."
In November, Police Chief Michael Beierschmitt presented a traffic report which measured the number of cars and the speed of those vehicles as they drove down Broadway on Sept. 17, 18 and 19. A review of the results showed the median speed of a vehicle at 29 mph and the average of all vehicles at 33 mph. The chief also said that 15 percent of the drivers had been driving faster than 36 mph.
"There is no doubt that there are speeders in that area," he said.
The traffic study also revealed that the highest concentration of speeding vehicles occurs on Broadway between 6-8 a.m. and noon and 2 p.m.
Beierschmitt said he would write a letter to the state requesting a state official to visit the borough and assess the situation.
The chief also said he wanted more speed limit signs posted on Broadway. He said he would like to add four more 30 mph signs to the four already posted.
In an effort to make the speed limit clearer, borough officials took the initiative to add two 30 mph speed limit signs on Broadway. There are now three 30 mph speed limit signs posted on both sides of Broadway between Elks Point and the Freehold Township border.
Beierschmitt told council members on Feb. 10 that he had received a response to his letter from Douglas R. Bartlett, manager of the Traffic Engineering and Investi-gations Division of the state Department of Transportation. The letter acknowledged the request for assistance in the matter.
"I have assigned John Jamieson of my staff to investigate your request," Bartlett wrote. "Please understand that my area of supervision covers the entire state, which is comprised of 566 municipalities and that a priority list and backlog schedule has already been established. However, your request will be investigated within the earliest time frame possible."
Beierschmitt didn’t offer any estimate of how much time he thought that would take, but told council members he was glad to have received a response to his inquiry. For now, the speed limit will remain at 30 mph on Broadway and officials will let the additional signs stand as a warning to drivers.
— Clare Marie Celano