New Toms River bridge opening delayed by week

BY PATRICIA A. MILLER
Staff Writer

TOMS RIVER - Motorists traveling through the county seat have gotten a week's reprieve from the major traffic pattern changes in store for the downtown area.

The new patterns are now set to debut on the night of Dec. 11 and should be completed by 6 a.m. on Dec. 12, when the new $5.4 million span over the Toms River opens, said county Engineer Ronald A. Lotrecchio.

"We've got everything ready to go, but we are still trying to play around with a few things here," he said. "We still need six hours of weather to make things happen. One of the traffic signs is a 50-foot mast arm that still hasn't been delivered."

Most of the paving work is complete, except for a small bit of cleanup work at the intersection of Water and Main streets, he said.

The "miracle day," the day the new downtown Toms River bridge was slated to open, was originally scheduled for Dec. 4, weather permitting.

The new, two-lane bridge crosses the Toms River west of the existing Main Street bridge. It connects an extension of Herflicker Boulevard from Irons Street in Toms River to South Main Street and Route 166 in South Toms River.

County officials predict a 20 percent improvement in traffic-clogged downtown Toms River, once the bridge is in use.

Road striping still needs to be done. Workers can use thermoplastic material to mark the roadways during the daytime, or can "fog'" the lines at night with a latex paint mist, Lotrecchio said.

"During the day we can use the thermoplastic truck to make all that happen," he said. "During the a.m. rush, we will have everything in place with the fogged lines."

The seven-day forecast for the area looks good so far, with little precipitation predicted. Temperatures are expected to drop near freezing at night, but hover around 45 degrees during the day, Lotrecchio said.

"We will still be able to make this happen without having to worry about a particular temperature overnight," he said.

It just can't rain or snow.

"The weather is the only thing," he said. "It has to be a dry night. I think the weather forecast is calling for a pretty dry period, so I think we are in good shape."

One of the biggest traffic pattern changes involves access to Route 166 south from Main and Water streets. Motorists will no longer be able to access Route 166 southbound from Main Street. Drivers heading south on Main Street must turn right onto Water Street, left onto Irons Street, left onto Herflicker Boulevard across the new bridge and then onto Route 166 south.

Other major changes include:

• Traffic heading northbound on Route 166 will change from two-way to one-way over the existing bridge into the downtown area.

• Motorists can no longer make a right turn from eastbound Water Street onto Route 166 south or turn left to travel north on Main Street. Drivers will be able to access Main Street by using Irons Street.

• Traffic heading northbound on Route 166 will change from two-way to one-way over the existing bridge into the downtown area. Motorists will still be able to make left and right turns going northbound on Route 166.

Message boards announcing the new traffic patterns will be in place on Main Street, Water Street and Irons Street. Police officers will be on hand to assist motorists with questions.

The traffic signal timing at the intersection of Irons and Water streets and at Main and Water streets may have to be adjusted, Lotrecchio said.

Ocean County is responsible for the Irons and Water street signal. The state Department of Transportation is responsible for the Water and Main streets signal, he said.

"I think we can live with the signal timing that is there," Lotrecchio said. "I think this will take a couple of weeks to shake out during the rush hour."

Lotrecchio and other county officials have stressed that the new bridge will not provide a cure-all for downtown traffic.

"There is going to be rush hour traffic, no matter what we do," he said.