NJDOT Provides Tentative Timetable for Lacey Road-Route 9 Work

An update this week from the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) has provided an approximate timetable for when widening of the roadway at the intersection of Lacey Road and Route 9 is due to begin, which is summer 2012.

“We’re currently winding down the design phase; this project is actually falling on a similar timeline to the ,” said Timothy Greeley, Press Officer for the NJDOT. “We’re planning to advertise the project in the spring, and hopefully begin construction next summer.”

According to the design plan, new turning movements will be made possible at the intersection through these proposed changes, in the hopes of alleviating bottlenecking at the intersection of Lacey Road and Route 9 – a longtime sticking point for many local residents.

Currently, Route 9’s northbound approach to Lacey Road features one exclusive left turn and one shared through and right turn lane. Route 9’s southbound approach to Lacey Road features one through lane and one exclusive right turn lane at a short angle.

“The southbound left turn movement is prohibited and presently accommodated via the local street system (a right turn on Oak Street, a right turn on Parker Avenue, and a right on turn Lacey Road eastbound),” Greeley explained. “Lacey Road’s westbound approach to Route 9 features one exclusive left turn lane and one shared through and right turn lane. Lacey Road’s eastbound approach to Route 9 features one shared right and through lane, and one shared left and through lane.”

The proposed improvements to the intersection would modify Route 9’s northbound approach and feature one left-turn lane, one through lane and one through/right lane. Route 9’s southbound approach would now feature two through lanes and an exclusive right-turn lane. However, the Route 9 southbound left turn would still be accomplished utilizing the existing movement made via Oak Street and Parker Avenue.

“Lacey Road’s eastbound approach would feature a double left-turn lane, a through lane and a right-turn lane, while the westbound approach on Lacey Road would feature a left turn lane and a shared through/right lane in this plan,” Greeley stated.

Greeley further noted that additional improvements in this project would include a new dedicated left turn being provided from Route 9 southbound to Jones Road, new sidewalks throughout the project limits, and the intersection’s drainage system being upgraded.

“We at the NJDOT are very glad that these projects are advancing, and feel they will be very beneficial to the residents of Lacey Township,” Greeley noted. “The project is included in our Fiscal Year 2012 Capital Program – so the money is there. It’s just a matter of completing the design process, finishing the project’s advertising package for the spring, and hopefully beginning construction next summer.”