Hopes are growing over Rt. 1 widening
BY CHRIS MURINO Staff Writer

SOUTH BRUNSWICK - The township has been receiving some encouraging news recently regarding the widening of Route 1.

The N.J. Department of Transportation (NJDOT) has proposed a 10-year capital plan to look into the widening of the highway.

According to NJDOT press officer Tim Greeley, the department is currently undergoing its initial Smart Growth Study of the Route 1 corridor in Plainsboro, South Brunswick and North Brunswick.

"Our Route 1 Regional Growth Strategy is an active Smart Growth Study with a goal of developing a consensus regional growth strategy for this stretch of Route 1 and the municipalities that it runs through," Greeley said. "The study is projected for completion by the end of calendar year 2008."

This is part of a proposed 10-year plan, with $2 million to be used for the concept development phase, which will be funded in the fiscal year 2009.

"NJDOT will actually be initiating this phase of the project in the coming weeks, beginning with our Design Consultant selection process," Greeley said.

The plan would be completed in 2018 and over $250 million is to be allotted for the proposed plan, which will include other studies such as a concept development study.

"It still has to be deemed feasible," Greeley said. "It has to be cost-effective. We still need to look at a lot."

In addition, Mayor Frank Gambatese recently met with Gary Rose, the chief of New Jersey's Office of Economic Growth, about the Route 1 widening. He said he received positive feedback.

"This is something that started about a year ago, regarding concerns on congestion in the Route 1 corridor and it's a continuation of those meetings," said Jim Gardner, a spokesman for Gov. Jon Corzine. "They're trying to come up with a solution on how best to alleviate it."

"We hope to have started in September," Gambatese said of the widening process.

Gambatese mentioned that the state might appoint an executive director to represent about 15 to 18 towns that need Route 1 widened. He said this would be good, to have a "single voice along the Route 1 corridor.

"Princeton has already started to widen the area," Gambatese said. "We've been told by the governor and the DOT that it has to be widened."

Princeton has begun widening some areas of Route 1 around the site of their future science park.

Gambatese also mentioned the Department of Environment Protection has to get on the same page as DOT, saying they often make it difficult to get permits to be anywhere close to the streets.