There's mixed emotion as to whether another study of Route 9 actually will result in improvements being made to the congested highway through Lakewood and Toms River Townships, after decades of hopes being raised.  

A number of people who attended the first public session in Toms River on August 18th, expressed a lack of confidence after hearing some of the possible ideas for improving traffic flow.

A Toms River resident named Bob who has lived in the Township since 1961 is among the skeptics, but said he would definitely like to see Route 9 widened.

"Once you get past [Route] 70 on Route 9, you almost come to a standstill to get through Lakewood in the mornings," he said. He also suggested having ramps over Route 9 intersections to alleviate congestion.

Another Toms River resident named Suzie, who has been living in the Township for just a few years, also said she is discouraged anything will ever happen. She pointed out that while everyone seems to know what needs to be done and a lot of good suggestions were made, it remains to be seen whether those ideas actually become a reality. She would like to see left turn lanes added.

"Every time you're on [Route] 9, somebody has to stop and turn left, and you get behind them, or you try and go around, then there's accidents," she said. "I do think that they are at the point of desperation," she added, pointing out that something needs to be done especially with Lakewood growing and the number of senior developments being built.

Bill Braden, a life-long Toms River resident and Chairman of the Ocean County Transportation Advisory Board (NJTPA), is optimistic this study will result in improvements to Route 9 moving forward because the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority is in charge of it, not the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT).

"All the other studies were done by the [NJ] DOT, and they just study things, no money and then they walk away," said Braden.

Braden said he doesn't believe widening Route 9 to four lanes through Lakewood is realistic, but is confident other improvements in Toms River are possible.

"In Toms River they could put a turning lane in, fix-up some of the intersections, there is still some land to be developed, and also there is a definite need for sidewalks and shoulders," Braden said.

Lakewood's meeting is scheduled for August 25, 2015, from 5pm to 8:30pm. It will be held at the Lakewood Municipal Building, located at 231 Third Street in Lakewood.

 

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