In September 2004, the Middlesex County engineer’s office said that the intersection of Lincoln, East and West Railroad and Gatzmer avenues in Jamesburg would be realigned with a traffic signal by 2007.
But, here we are, a month into 2008 and the intersection remains as confusing as ever — and the traffic signal seems no closer to being installed than it was nearly four years ago.
The county now says that the intersection could be realigned next year, but given the complicated nature of the intersection — which includes the involvement of Conrail and the need for state approval — we’re not holding our breath.
That said, we do hope that the various parties involved with the upgrades can find a way to expedite the process.
The five-way intersection has earned the reputation as one of the more confusing intersections in the region, prone to traffic congestion.
”Some days you don’t know which way to go,” Mayor Anthony LaMantia said last week.
The intersection is regulated by stop signs on East Railroad Avenue, for westbound traffic, and Gatzmer Avenue, for eastbound traffic, at its intersection with Lincoln Avenue. Traffic heading west on Gatzmer, toward South Brunswick, does not have a stop sign. In addition, there is a yield sign on West Railroad Avenue where it meets Gatzmer. Traffic turning from Lincoln Avenue onto Gatzmer, where Lincoln ends in a T, has right of way along with westbound traffic on Gatzmer.
Confusing, to say the least — especially when you factor in the Conrail freight track that cuts across the intersection and runs between the two Railroad avenues, and the Half Acre Road-Gatzmer intersection less than 50 feet to the east.
That’s why borough officials have been pushing for improvements for years, with county officials finally getting involved in 2003.
The Borough Council approved a plan in 2006, prepared by Alaimo Associates, of Mount Holly, that called for two signaled intersections, one at East Railroad, Lincoln and Gatzmer avenues and the other at Half Acre and Gatzmer. The yield sign would remain at West Railroad, though drivers would be restricted to making right turns onto Gatzmer.
Since then, the plan has stalled. The primary complication, according to the county, is the need to involve Conrail in the process. Conrail has reviewed the plans and requested some changes, including a promise to time the new traffic lights with the Conrail freight trains that run through the intersection.
The plans are back in Alaimo’s hands. Once the engineering firm makes revisions, it will submit the plans to the state Department of Transportation’s Railroad Engineering and Safety Unit for approval, which the county hopes will come sometime this month. If that occurs, county officials say the improvements could be put in place next year.
That, of course, assumes that the necessary right of ways can be acquired and no other complications arise.
In the meantime, drivers will need to keep their wits about them as they attempt to navigate the intersection.
