Traffic on the Shore

Route 9 Lanes to Close Overnight for Parkway Deck Repairs

Closures expected through Oct. 26

Route 9 lane closures begin tonight for parkway deck repairs under mile 83. The bridge deck repairs over Routes 9 and 166 for Garden State Parkway mile 83 will shutter portions of the highway overnight starting Oct. 17. The lane closures are expected to continue through Oct. 26, according to the state Department of Transportation. Construction crews will close lanes of Route 9 and 166 in Toms River starting at 9 p.m. tonight. Both north and southbound traffic underneath the overpasses that make up Exit 83 will be affected. The undersides of the bridges need work, and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority and DOT will close lanes to make repairs, DOT spokesperson Timothy Greeley said. Drivers should note construction crews and traffic cones in …

•  9 Comments
• Photos (2)

Traffic-Alleviating Lomell Lane Opens in Toms River

New connector road between Route 571 and Route 9 diverts some around the roads' intersection, eases northbound Parkway access

As a worker from C.J. Hesse removed the last of the traffic barrels from the Exit 83 ramp coming off the Garden State Parkway, a pickup truck exited to the left and pulled up to the light at Lomell Lane. And with his turn left onto Lomell Lane, that driver became the first to use the new connector road to reach Route 571 and avoid the traffic tieups that have long plagued drivers getting off the Parkway who were heading north on Route 166/Route 9. "This is a dramatic improvement for our commuters," Freeholder Director Gerry P. Little said during ceremonies officially opening the new road, construction on which began in October. In addition to traffic relief that Little and the rest of the Ocean County Board of Freeholders have been …

•  26 Comments
• Photos (16)

County to Open Exit 83 Connector Road Friday

County's portion of the project completed three months ahead of schedule, officials say

Come Friday, drivers will have a new road to get them around the intersection of Routes 166 and 571 in Toms River. The Exit 83 connector road, which was begun last October, will be opened on Friday to traffic as part of ongoing improvements at Interchange 83, the Ocean County Board of Freeholders announced today. "Just in time for fans to use it to go see Ryan Howard playing for the (Lakewood) BlueClaws," quipped Freeholder John P. Kelly, joking about the timing of the completion of the project. Howard, a member of the Philadelphia Phillies, is playing for the BlueClaws for a few days as he returns to the major league club after an injury. The connector road, named Lomell Lane in honor of Leonard G. "Bud" Lomell, the Ocean County resident …

•  22 Comments
• Photos (1)

View Finder

PHOTOS: Exit 83 Changes Since County Groundbreaking

Traffic patterns will change when Exit 83 ramp opesn

The complete reconfiguration of exit 83 to the Garden State Parkway broke ground last year. And with the project just weeks within opening, here's a look back as the construction unfolded in Toms River. Check out our gallery of images and our past articles on exit 83. Abundant Grace Church Hopeful That Parkway Access Road Will Decrease Traffic Work to Begin Next Month on Parkway Exit 83 Connector Road Project Will Connect Route 571 to Parkway Exit 83, Overhauling Traffic Parkway Interchange 83 Slated for Changes PHOTOS: Maps of Parkway Plans for Miles 83 to 100

• Photos (23)
• Documents (1)

Freeholders Joining Effort to Allay Residents' Parkway Widening Complaints

Freeholders say they're working with Turnpike Authority to find ways to mitigate noise concerns

The New Jersey Turnpike Authority has told residents of Toms River that a sound barrier to muffle noise from the widening of the Garden State Parkway is highly unlikely. But the Ocean County Board of Freeholders say they're committed to trying to work with the Turnpike Authority to find a compromise. "We’re happy about the widening," Freeholder John P. Kelly said during the freeholders' meeting in Toms River on Wednesday afternoon. "While we want this, we believe we need to be responsible to community that lives in that area." Residents of Todd Road in Toms River, in particular, have been lobbying the Turnpike Authority to construct a sound barrier as the parkway is widened between exits 88 and 83, citing concerns about noise and safety. …

•  11 Comments
• Photos (1)

PHOTOS: Maps of Parkway Plans for Miles 83 to 100

New Jersey Turnpike Authority divides plans into three stretches, while Ocean County addresses exits 83 and 91

The public hearing yesterday on the lane and shoulder widening and upgrades to interchanges 91 and 83 of the Garden State Parkway allowed the public to view the project plans. Here are some of the maps on display at the event. The Brick Civic Plaza hosted the hearing of the project — which stretches from miles 83 to 100 on the parkway — displaying it in multiple map boards. Here's a key to the maps in our gallery: The main initiative to the project is to widen the shoulders and lanes along these miles, which are all lanes in blue. Shoulders and right-of-ways that are used as part of the widening to 12 foot shoulders are along the roadways in gray. Reddened areas denote bridges that will be widened. In Ocean County, bridgework at Route 571…

•  32 Comments
• Photos (12)

Harold Reynolds

9:21 am on Tuesday, January 22, 2013

The Freeloaders should be fighting for as many exits and entrances as the ppl of Ocean County demand Instead they worry about things like having 13 Commissioners at the OCUA each getting 5 k a yr and FREE Medical and Pension Credits Do your JOB Freeloaders   more ›

Public Hearing on Parkway Projects from Toms River to Wall

Begins 4 p.m. Thursday in Brick Civic Plaza, Chambers Bridge Road

A stretch of the Garden State Parkway cited for frequent accidents is now slated for several improvements, and a public hearing on projects between miles 83 and 100 begins 4 p.m. tomorrow in Brick. The public hearing, which will also address the reconstruction of exits 83 and 91 in Toms River and Brick, will be held through 7:30 p.m. The New Jersey Turnpike Authority is hosting the public hearing, to gather public comment on the two interchange projects plus the widening of lanes between miles 83 to 100 and changes to interchange 88/89 in Brick. Turnpike Authority spokesperson Thomas Feeney said this stretch of the parkway will focus on shoulder widening and lane improvements, part of a response to a history of serious accidents between …

•  8 Comments
• Photos (5)
• Documents (1)

E.L. Toms River

1:40 am on Friday, March 16, 2012

Catherine if there is no southbound exit planned for 83 then the article needs to be corrected "Exit 83, which is currently accessible as a northbound exit putting drivers on Route 9 north, is planned to be a full interchange. That means traffic on the parkway north and southbound will be able to exit and enter from either direction on Route 9."   more ›

View Finder

PHOTOS: Parkway Exit 83 Construction

Shoulder closings on Route 571 and Parkway northbound continue this week as Exit 83 becomes a full interchange

The long-term project of rebuilding the parkway at Exit 83 continues in Toms River with shoulder closings along Route 571 and the parkway. At Intermediate Way and Route 571, the construction crews and flag men are clearing the way for an exit and entrance to parkway north and south at that stretch of Bey Lea Road. The existing entrance to parkway north at Route 166 is part of the construction. Check out our gallery of the recent construction as the project unfolds.

•  3 Comments
• Photos (18)

Traffic Issues Downtown and on Bey Lea Road

Two construction projects altering traffic patterns

The long-term construction associated with parking deck repairs and a new parkway interchange are altering traffic downtown and on Bey Lea Road today. At the municipal parking garage, cranework has closed the entrance from Robbins Street, and traffic is again two-way at Robbins Parkway. Previously the roadway became a one-way traffic pattern from East Water Street up Robbins Parkway to Robbins Street. According to the Toms River Engineer's Office, the crane's presence at the top of the parking garage will facilitate the installation of new steel beams, and intermittent traffic changes from two-way to one-way traffic will be ongoing until the work is complete. The project is both to repair the aging parking garage, part of a project that …

•  5 Comments
• Photos (3)