Chambers Bridge Rd. safety improvements now in place
BY DANIELLE MEDINA Correspondent

BRICK TOWNSHIP - Township officials hope that the installation of a safety fence and additional street lighting on Chambers Bridge Road will curb pedestrians from crossing the busy street illegally.

"It is our duty to do everything we can to make sure residents are safe," Mayor Stephen C.Acropolis said recently. "It had become evident that there was a safety issue on Chambers Bridge Road that had to be addressed. It became our top priority."

Three pedestrians were struck and killed in 2007 while trying to cross the street, either against the light or not in themarked crosswalks.

The 1,170-foot, dark-colored mesh fence, which extends from the entrance of the Kohl's Plaza to Bally Total Fitness, was constructed on the median of Chambers Bridge Road and prevents pedestrians from crossing the roadway except in the crosswalks.

The Ocean County Engineering Department constructed the fence, because Chambers Bridge Road is a county route, the mayor said.

"The county was a tremendous partner on this project," Acropolis said. "They listened to our concerns and suggestions and worked quickly to get this done."

The lighting along that stretch of the roadway has also been improved. Jersey Central Power & Light installed 15 additional streetlights with higher intensity light bulbs in the area.

"The additional lights will improve visibility for motorists and pedestrians," Acropolis said. "The lights, along with the fence, have made Chambers Bridge Road safer."

There has been only one incident of a pedestrian crossing the street illegally since the fence went up on Feb. 22, Sgt. Donald Ling of the police department's traffic safety unit said.

"On Feb. 26, there was a report that there was a woman walking along the fence, wearing dark clothing, in the pouring rain," Ling said.

Ling said that there are officers on patrol on the street during the day and at night to ensure that people are not crossing illegally.

"This will be a learning experience, because people are creature of habit," Ling said, "but they shouldn't confuse convenience with safety."

John F.Auerbacher, 81, was struck and killed on Jan. 19, 2007, by a sport-utility vehicle driven by Talia L. Pereira, Toms River, as he tried to cross the street near the entrance to Kohl's Plaza.

WilliamGregson, 74, was struck and killed in October by a township police cruiser driven by Scott Smith, 24, as he tried to cross the street in the dark.

Both Auerbacher and Gregson failed to use the marked crosswalk to cross the street.

Henry A. Genovese Jr., 69, tried to cross the street in a motorized scooter in the dark last November. Genovese was in the crosswalk, but against the light when he was struck and killed by a car driven by Patrick J. Judge, 48, of Allenwood.

The crosswalk at the intersection of Chambers Bridge Road and Ovation Way links the Brick Township Housing Authority's Forge Pond senior citizen apartment complexes on the northbound side of the roadway to Kohl's Plaza and the U.S. Post Office on the southbound side.

Police urge anyone trying to cross at the intersection to use the crosswalk and push the button to change the traffic signal, so they can cross on a green light.

The light at the intersection can sense how many cars are lined up and changes accordingly. But pressing the pedestrian-activated button to change the light overrides the traffic sensor and gives pedestrians more time to cross the street, police have said.