It's getting safer to drive around Brick, but here's why drivers still feel stressed
BRICK - When Julie Gurney spent summers in the 1960s in Brick as a child, many of the streets were still undeveloped dirt roads.
"The '70s was pretty nice. It was still a summer kind of town, not too crazy," she said. But starting in the 1980s, she remembers seeing an increase in congestion — and traffic accidents — as more housing and commercial developments popped up.
“Our malls being all around Route 70," she said, "that whole area has become a real traffic nightmare."
Since then, commuters, shoppers and residents have complained of the stresses of driving in the township. But while Brick's population has plateaued in the last 20 years, the number of vehicle crashes has fallen by 28% in the past two decades, government data shows.
In 2001, there were 2,245 crashes in Brick, while in 2021, the last year for state crash data, there were only 1,617 crashes in the township.
In 2000, Brick had a population of 76,308 residents, according to the US census. Currently, the census estimates that Brick has a population of 75,651 people.
Meanwhile, the township's Master Plan notes that "population increases in neighboring communities have increased the demand for retail space in Brick, especially on the larger commuter oriented travel corridors." Lakewood, which borders Brick to the west, has ballooned from just over 60,000 residents in the 2000 Census to more than 135,000 in the 2020 Census.
Traffic in neighboring Lakewood: Car crashes there have jumped 69% in 20 years. So what are they going to do about it?
Crash numbers tumble
From 2001 to 2014, crashes hovered between 2,100 to over 2,500 crashes. But from 2015 to 2021, the number of crashes fell below 2,100 crashes each year.
The roads with the largest decrease in crashes from 2014 to 2021 include Routes 70 and 88, which are both state highways, and County Route 549, which extends from Howell to Toms River. Route 549 includes portions of Herbertsville Road, Sally Ike Road, Lanes Mill Road, Burnt Tavern Road, Chambers Bridge Road, Brick Boulevard and Hooper Avenue.
According to the state Traffic Count Reports, all roads in Brick with a daily average of more than 20,000 vehicles are either Routes 70 and 88 or county roads, including Brick Boulevard, Cedar Bridge Avenue, Chambers Bridge Road, Hooper Avenue and Lanes Mill Road.
Ocean County spokesperson Donna Flynn said that in 2015, the county worked on a federally funded project along an 8.8-mile stretch of Hooper Avenue and Brick Boulevard to improve traffic signal timing in order to improve safety, reduce congestion and decrease delays.
"We recognize that reduced congestion should result in a reduction of accidents," Flynn wrote in an email. The project reduced travel times by about four or five minutes, according to a Powerpoint.
The reason for the improvement on the state highways is less clear. According to Leanna Nelson, spokesperson for the state Department of Transportation, "After going through our records, we were unable to identify a reason for why the number of crashes changed in 2014/2015."
Between August 2017 and August 2018, the state revised its signal layout at Route 70 and Chambers Bridge Road to provide "better signal head visibility," she said. The state DOT is evaluating potential improvements "along the Route 88 corridor between Route 70/Princeton Avenue and the Point Pleasant border to improve safety," she wrote. The state is also considering revising the signal layout for Route 70 and Brick Boulevard.
Where are the problems?
While crashes have fallen since 2015, drivers are still feeling the stress of driving along certain roads in the township.
The area with the highest number of crashes in Brick is around Route 70 and Chambers Bridge Road. On a map in the township's Master Plan, updated this past December, a lone red circle denotes over 1,000 crashes that have occurred there between 2018 and 2022.
The area with the next highest number of crashes in the same time period occurred just two intersections to the north, around Route 70 and Route 88.
While overall traffic accidents might have declined, there are still plenty of vehicles on Brick's roads. On any given day, about 30,000 vehicles will drive along Route 70 and pass Chambers Bridge Road. During the peak hour, from 5 to 6 p.m., about 2,500 to 3,000 commuters will make their way across that intersection, according to state Traffic Count Reports from 2012 to 2020.
When Lauren Pennington first moved to Brick four years ago, she would take Route 70 to drive to her job in Wall. On her commute home, whenever she would reach the edge of Brick, she would find herself stuck in traffic. What should have been the last 20 minutes of her commute would turn into a stressful 30- or 40-minute drive home.
"Every member of my family has come up with alternative routes to avoid the main roadways," Pennington said.
Pennington and Gurney have both spoken against development projects that have come before the township, including a proposed 60-home development on 31.8 acres of woods that Ocean County and Brick Township bought for $8.5 million in January 2023 to preserve as open space.
Of the crashes involving vehicles, the number of people who have been injured or killed has decreased. In 2002, 1,023 people were injured in crashes, while 560 people were injured in 2021. The first year of the pandemic in 2020 experienced the lowest number of crashes, at 471. On average, about four or five people have died in crashes in the township from 2001 to 2021.
About 34.6% of crashes have occurred at intersections, which is slightly above the county average of 30.4%.
According to Flynn, Ocean County residents can stay up to date about county construction projects by signing up for a weekly commuter forecast at www.co.ocean.nj.us/frmCommuterNews.aspx.
New roadwork in Brick
Currently, the county is working on construction projects including:
Duck Farm Bridge.
Jack Martin Boulevard from Route 88 to Burrsville Road.
Sally Ike Road from Lanes Mill Road to the Monmouth County boundary.
The county intends to start three reconstruction and resurfacing projects that have been funded at:
Route 549 Herbertsville Road from Sally Ike Road to Route 70.
Herborn Avenue from Burnt Tavern Road to the Monmouth County boundary.
River Road from Route 70 to Osborne Avenue.
Future traffic signal projects could include the intersections of:
Van Zile Road and Harrison Avenue.
Lanes Mill Road and Sally Ike Road
Princeton Avenue and Brushy Neck Drive.
Princeton Avenue and Beaver Dam Road
Lanes Mill Road and Burke Lane and Larchmont Avenue
Future reconstruction and resurfacing projects could include:
Princeton Avenue.
Adamston Road from Drum Point Road to Mantoloking Road
Laurel Avenue from Drum Point Road to Downey Avenue.
Jordan Road from Midstreams Bridge to Route 88.
Lanes Mill Road from Burnt Tavern Road to Herbertsville Road.
Van Zile Road from Route 70 to Burnt Tavern Road.
According to Mayor Lisa Crate, the township is looking to pave a number of roads that are within its jurisdiction.
The roads include:
Morris Avenue.
Meridian Drive from Midstreams Road to Jordan Road.
Birch Drive.
Within Baywood: Glenn Drive, Maple Court, Spruce Court, Chestnut Court, Cedar Drive, Holly Court East, Pine Drive South, Bay Laurel Drive, Willetta Drive, Delmar Drive and Bonair Drive.
Within Lakewood Gardens: Chestnut Avenue, Bradley Avenue, Walnut Avenue, Cherie Drive, Park Place, Melody Avenue, Green Avenue and Green Grove Road.
Within Bay Harbor: Queen Ann Road, Eastland Road, Glen Road, Lime Road, Orange Road, Bimini Road, Appleton Road, Hemlock Road, Beaumont Drive, Clearwater Drive, Somerset Drive, Claremont Drive, Sunnydale Drive, Brookfield Drive, Greenville Drive and Ardmore Drive.
Olivia Liu is a reporter covering transportation, Red Bank and western Monmouth County. She can be reached at oliu@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Brick traffic accidents fell since the start of the 21st century
