FREEHOLD – A project to install a traffic signal at a busy intersection in Freehold Borough has been completed after more than a decade of planning.
On Aug. 20, Monmouth County representatives unveiled an intersection improvement project at East Main Street (Route 537), Jackson Street and Jackson Terrace in Freehold Borough. Officials gathered at the location to activate the traffic light that is the centerpiece of the upgrades.
The location has signals that will assist pedestrians as they navigate the intersection. Improvements also included curbing, sidewalks, storm drains, curb ramps that are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and solar powered flashing trail beacons at the Henry Hudson Trail crossing, Monmouth County Freeholder Director Tom Arnone said.
Arnone said push button-activated flashing beacons will be installed in a few weeks at the crossing for the Henry Hudson Trail, which is just east of the intersection of Route 537, Jackson Street and Jackson Terrace.
“The flashing beacons will draw a driver’s attention to the trail crossing, as well as to the
walkers and bikers using the Henry Hudson Trail,” he said. “The constructed improvements at this intersection and at the Henry Hudson Trail crossing will enhance safety to the traveling public and improve traffic flow through the intersection.”
As previously reported, the idea to construct a traffic light at Route 537, Jackson Street and Jackson Terrace dates back at least a decade. A number of accidents have been recorded at the intersection, with a 2005 News Transcript article referencing a collision that caused one vehicle to overturn.
Because Route 537 is a county road, the project required approval from Monmouth County. Final approval for the project was under the authority of the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) and certain criteria had to be met for the traffic light to be installed.
The criteria for the DOT to approve the traffic signal required a certain number of right-angle accidents and a certain volume of traffic in an eight-hour period at the intersection, as previously reported.
When the intersection was evaluated in 2003, the location did not meet the DOT criteria for a traffic light, based on traffic volume and the number of accidents.
Freehold Borough officials subsequently noted the number of incidents was increasing over time and the project was eventually approved, with work scheduled to begin in 2011 or 2012.
However, the project was delayed after tropical storm Irene struck New Jersey in 2011 and superstorm Sandy caused massive damage in the county in 2012, as previously reported. Restoration projects resulting from those two storms pushed the Route 537, Jackson Street and Jackson Terrace project back until this year.
Following the delays, the traffic light was installed at the intersection by the Monmouth County Department of Public Works and Engineering and activated last week.
“We are very pleased to have the traffic signal installed at the East Main Street, Jackson Street and Jackson Terrace intersection,” Mayor Nolan Higgins said. “The intersection had become dangerous for vehicles turning left from Jackson Terrace to East Main Street, and for vehicles crossing East Main Street from either direction. A controlled intersection will provide a safer crossing for our high school and grade school students, as well as for people using the Henry Hudson Trail.”
The intersection is in proximity for individuals who may walk to Freehold High School on Broadway and to the Freehold Learning Center elementary school on Dutch Lane Road.
