Rutgers, city adapt to latest phase of Route 18 construction
Archived article from Apr 24, 2006
By Pam Orel
The second phase of the Route 18 construction project is moving into high gear, and drivers are adapting to fast-changing detours and other challenges in their daily travels around the Banks.
City, county, state and university officials are discussing additional road signs to assist people looking for specific locations, such as theaters, court facilities or Rutgers campuses. The discussions are intended to help infrequent visitors to the New Brunswick area navigate the new traffic patterns.
“The signage would assist university visitors or people attending special events like commencement,” said university transportation planner Jennifer S. Lane.
Commencement visitors are being advised to allow extra time for travel.
While the situation evolves, commuters can turn to several sources of information in addition to the Web site and listserv available at route18update.rutgers.edu. RU-TV has begun broadcasting live state Department of Transportation Route 18 traffic camera visuals on Channel 18, and a joint project involving Rutgers and the state DOT allows visitors near campus to tune in to 530 AM on the radio for construction and travel news.
Among the other changes implemented this month:
• New Street closed in mid-April and is anticipated to remain closed for 11 months while crews demolish the New Street bridge.
• Left-turns are now prohibited onto and from George Street where it intersects Church, Bayard, New and Morris streets, as well as Remsen Avenue.
• Southbound traffic on Route 18 has been detoured onto temporary lanes at Burnet Street.
• The jughandle at Commercial Avenue and Route 18 northbound has been replaced by a double-lane, left-turn traffic pattern at the intersection.
• A longer left-turn lane has been put into place at the intersection of Albany and Neilson streets.
• Traffic signals on George Street have been retimed to expedite the flow of traffic.
• In addition, lane closures will continue on Route 18 in the evening and early morning hours, depending on construction schedules.
Plans call for the construction of new express and local lanes on Route 18 from Route 1 to the Amtrak railroad bridge. New bridges are envisioned at New and Albany streets and Commercial Avenue, and a new pedestrian walkway will be constructed at Paulus Boulevard and Carpender Road. Pedestrian and bicycle paths, as well as improvements to
Boyd Park, also are in the works. The project is scheduled to
wrap up in 2009.
Employees searching for commuting alternatives can choose from several options, including:
• Rutgers Rideshare, a database matching university employees who wish to carpool. More than 100 employees are in the system waiting for a rideshare match; the most common points of origin include Belle Mead, Hillsborough, Howell and Somerset. To register or get information, visit uhr.rutgers.edu/rideshare.
• Keep Middlesex Moving, the county’s nonprofit traffic management association, which maintains a countywide database of commuters seeking carpool or vanpool arrangements and provides links to transportation services. KMM is currently offering a carpool incentive program, Fuel Your Pool! It offers a $100 gas card to qualified carpools in which the group drives 30 times before June 30, 2006 and travels through the Route 18 construction zone. Visit www.kmm.org for information.
• CommuterTax$ave, a statewide program that allows full-time employees who use mass transit to set aside pre-tax dollars up to a set amount for parking and mass transit costs associated with work. Visit
uhr.rutgers.edu/ben/CommuterTaxSavePlan.htm for information.
• A separate program is also available for part-time employees. Information is available at uhr.rutgers.edu/ben/MassTransitSavingPlan.htm.
• Videoconferencing sites, maintained by Rutgers’ Division of Continuous Education and Outreach, can be used to conduct training sessions, classes and administrative meetings across campuses, saving participants time on busy highways. For information, visit videoconference.rutgers.edu.
• Zipcar, a vehicle-sharing service designed for motorists who may need a car periodically but don’t always drive to campus. Vehicles are available for rent by the hour or day. Visit www.zipcar.com/rutgers.
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