Jones Lang LaSalle

DOT plan calls for delaying Rt. 206 bypass until 2008
By PAMELA SROKA Staff Writer

HILLSBOROUGH -- The state is still committed to completing the Route 206 bypass, but construction may not start until 2008, it was revealed Tuesday.

The project from Old Somerville Road in Hillsborough to Belle Meade-Griggstown Road is included in the state's $3.2 billion transportation capital plan released Tuesday.

"The road is going through, and they (DOT officials) are committed," Assemblyman Peter Biondi, R-Hillsborough, said about the bypass.

Construction is now scheduled to begin in 2008 because the state is still in the process of acquiring properties for the project, Biondi said.

The replacement of the Route 206 bridge over the CSX railroad in the Belle Mead section of Montgomery also is slated for 2008. That project calls for $17 million to replace the existing 85-foot span with a new 138-foot bridge, plus realignments to Route 206 and County Route 601.
The bypass would reroute traffic on the present stretch of Route 206 south of Somerville Road to a new highway to the east. The bypass would divert traffic from the present Route 206 through downtown Hillsborough and open up industrial development in the eastern part of the township.

Total design cost of the four-lane bypass is $11,625,000, and total construction funding is $100,806,000. In 2008, funding will total $21 million; in 2009, $55 million; and in 2010, $61 million.

On Tuesday, Hillsborough Mayor Carl Suraci wrote a letter to Department of Transportation Commissioner Kris Kolluri expressing dismay about moving the project to 2008.

"The Township Committee and citizens of Hillsborough have a great concern regarding the recent announcement by NJDOT regarding pushing construction funding for the Route 206 bypass to fy 2008," Suraci wrote. "Interests outside of our community have suggested that the decision reflects the DOT's willingness to alter the design of the project and delay its ultimate construction. We do not believe that, as it is contrary to our discussions on March 21."

Suraci requested a DOT representative attend the Township Committee meeting April 25 to explain the reasoning for the change and its impact on the construction.

Montgomery officials are opposed to the plan and have proposed alternatives to the bypass's terminus on Belle Meade-Griggstown Road.

Consultants hired by Montgomery had proposed several solutions, such as ending the bypass one-third to one-half a mile sooner, north of Pike Run Road and closer to Route 601.

"With DOT's blessing, Montgomery researched and suggested alternative plans that are much less expensive and that would still serve the congestion-relieve objectives that are so important to Hillsborough," Montgomery Mayor Louise Wilson said in an e-mail. "Dumping thousands of additional cars onto 206 at Belle Mead-Griggstown would create a crushing congestion problem in much of Montgomery and would also severely impact Rocky Hill, Princeton, Hopewell and Lawrenceville."

Other Somerset County construction projects scheduled for 2008 include:

Amwell Bridge over the Neshanic River in Hillsborough.

Route 206 Crusers Brook Bridge in Bridgewater.

The Somerset/Morris drainage improvements: In Far Hills, Bernardsville and Morris Township, work includes $3.8 million at Sunny Branch Road for clearing the culvert, headwall configuration, installation of a longitudinal system along the southbound shoulders and construction of a rip-rap lined outlet channel to Mine Brook. Work also is expected at the Harter Road location.

Geraud Avenue Bridge over the Green Brook in Green Brook.

The 2007 capital plan also includes money for initial engineering of a $5 billion rail tunnel under the Hudson River.

"This capital program reflects the governor's commitment to not only the Transportation Trust Fund but to grow and prosper the economy," Kolluri said.

The state's share of the money, $1.6 billion, comes from $6.4 billion of borrowing recently approved by the Legislature to replenish the state's Transportation Trust Fund. Most of the rest comes from the federal government.

Nearly half of the money, $1.3 billion, will go to NJ Transit projects, winning praise from transportation advocates who have urged ways to reduce the numbers of cars and trucks on the roads.

"Congestion relief is not just what we can do on our roadways. It's what alternative modes of transportation we can provide our residents," Kolluri said.

The proposed projects will be reviewed by the Legislature and must be approved as part of the state budget, which takes effect July 1.

Mass transit projects include new rail cars and buses, expanded parking at train stations, engineering work for a new station in North or South Brunswick and plans to make it easier for commuters to walk to public transportation.

"From what we're hearing, this is a very positive step," said Tom Dallessio, New Jersey director for the Regional Plan Association.

Damien Newton, a spokesman for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign, pointed approvingly to increased funding for walking and bicycle projects.

"The average New Jersey family takes 12 trips per day, almost all in cars. When you have bikeable, walkable communities you can cut down on those trips significantly," Newton said.
But the head of the New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club said some of the projects, including adding parking at some rail sites and plans for a light rail connection to the Meadowlands, are only helping developers bring more housing.

"The developers should be paying for it, not the taxpayers," said Jeff Tittel, executive director of the Sierra Club's New Jersey chapter.

For commuters to New York, there will be money for an ongoing effort to increase rail capacity to midtown Manhattan and begin expansion of platforms at New York Penn Station, in anticipation of the new rail tunnel, Kolluri said. Motorists will see money for rehabilitation work on the road leading to the Holland Tunnel.

Pamela Sroka can be reached at (908) 707-3155 or psroka@c-n.com.