FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP – Members of the public are being invited to attend a presentation about planned improvements along Route 537 in Freehold Township.
The Sept. 19 meeting will take place in the municipal building at the corner of Schanck and Stillwells Corner roads from 4-7 p.m. Members of the public may attend at any time. A presentation of the plans will be offered at 5:30 p.m.
Representatives of Monmouth County, the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority, the New Jersey Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration will host the meeting and unveil the preliminary engineering phase for the Route 537 improvements between Sentinel Road and Route 9.
Sentinel Road is a residential street that is west of Iron Bridge Road and intersects with eastbound Route 537.
Written comments concerning the planned improvements will be accepted through Oct. 20 and may be emailed, mailed or faxed to project manager Daria Jakimowska of the Monmouth County Division of Engineering and Traffic Safety at daria.jakimowska@co.monmouth.nj.us, 1 E. Main St., Freehold, NJ 07728, or 732-431-7765.
As previously reported, the issues and concerns on this section of Route 537 include traffic operational deficiencies; safety deficiencies; substandard design elements; a lack of shoulders along the entire length; substandard auxiliary lane widths along exterior lanes; substandard vertical geometry at two locations; few auxiliary lanes, deceleration lanes or shoulders for turning movements at intersections and at business and shopping complexes.
From 2009-11, 170 motor vehicle accidents at the Route 9 north exit ramp to Route 537, 123 motor vehicle accidents on Route 537 eastbound approaching Trotters Way at the Freehold Raceway Mall, 95 motor vehicle accidents on Route 537 heading east at the bridge over Route 9, 62 motor vehicle accidents at the intersection of Route 537 and Wemrock/Stillwells Corner roads, and 44 motor vehicle accidents at the intersection of Route 537 and Redwood Lane/Village Center Drive were reported.
According to Monmouth County, the corridor has numerous conflicting access points that create traffic operational issues; insufficient shoulders or lack of outside shoulders for the entire length of road; no bicycle compatibility; and gaps in existing sidewalks.
The purpose of the proposed project is to improve traffic safety, reduce traffic congestion and provide better accommodations for various modes of transportation along the Route 537 corridor, according to county representatives.
The goal is to minimize traffic signal congestion, especially at peak times, and to address the high incidence of motor vehicle collisions.
The Route 537 improvements were initially planned to extend beyond the Route 9 overpass in Freehold Township and across Park Avenue (Route 33) to West Main Street in Freehold Borough, as reported in 2013.
After borough officials objected, citing negative impacts they believed the project would have on West Main Street, county officials acknowledged those concerns and announced that the planned Route 537 improvements will not extend beyond the Route 9 overpass, coming from Freehold Township.
