During a recent Hillsborough Township Committee meeting, officials confirmed that a number of road projects are either under way or about to start in the coming weeks.
During the Feb. 27 township committee meeting, Committeeman Carl Suraci and Mayor Gloria McCauley outlined a number of such projects, including the repaving of a portion of Beekman Lane.
“We are looking forward to these infrastructure improvements to begin soon,” McCauley said.
According to the mayor, the township received a local aid grant of $508,000 from the state Department of Transportation for the repaving of “Beekman Lane Phase 1,” found between Amwell Road and Triangle Road.
McCauley praised the work of Assistant Township Engineer Tom Belanger and the Engineering Department for successfully acquiring the grant. Though the project was originally estimated to cost upwards of $538,000, the mayor suggested the project could even be brought under budget if things go smoothly.
The Beekman Lane project has not yet gone to bid. Completion is expected by the end of the year or early spring 2019, at the latest.
The eastbound lane of Falcon Road, which has been pockmarked with potholes in recent weeks, also drew the mayor’s attention during the meeting.
McCauley said the township has been discussing the issue with the developers of the Gateway adult living community, which is responsible for rebuilding and improving that road. Though plans from the developer include widening, drainage and other improvements to Falcon Road, she said they have also committed to do temporary paving repairs, weather permitting. Repair work is expected to begin later this month, when asphalt plants reopen.
Suraci also shared that New Amwell Road, between Taurus and Beekman Lanes, will also undergo some resurfacing this spring. The work was planned last year and funds for the project have already been set aside.
The former mayor urged any residents living in that area and arranging for new utility lines to their homes to get the work done as soon as possible.
“Unfortunately, these types of utility hook ups require excavation of the existing road way and we don’t want to have to excavate newly paved roadway,” he said.
Additionally, McCauley reported that the next phase of the long-discussed Route 206 bypass has already begun.
“We have been advised that on or about March 6, work will begin on the next phase of the bypass,” she said. “The initial work will involve tree removal, which is targeted to be complete by March 31.”
Since the early ’70s, township officials have considered the Route 206 bypass as a way to ease congestion by shifting traffic to the east of the existing highway between Mountain View Road and Old Somerville Road.
Back in October 2013, after years of work getting the project in motion, then Gov. Chris Christie opened the center portion of the bypass, located between Amwell Road and Hillsborough Road. That 1.7 mile stretch of road, now known as the Peter J. Biondi Bypass, was constructed by the Hillsborough-based Carbro Inc. to the tune of $44 million funded by the NJDOT.
The remainder of the bypass project will also be funded by the state, officials said.
Once completed, officials claim the nearly 4-mile stretch of road will ease congestion along Route 206. That shift in traffic will allow the township to establish a town center/downtown area with opportunities for commercial development.
