Lakewood car crashes have jumped 69% in 20 years. So what are they going to do about it?

Olivia Liu, Asbury Park Press
Updated ·7 min read
15

LAKEWOOD - Rabbi Yitzchok Hertz personally knows of about 10 crashes that have happened at the intersection of Gudz Road and New Central Avenue. Some of the crashes have involved his relatives, neighbors and friends.

"It's just unbelievable how many people are getting into accidents there," Hertz said. There are so many that sometimes they're hard to keep straight.

Injuries fluctuated between 807 people in 2020 and 1,304 people in 2004. On average, 1,165 people are injured in the township each year as a result of a motor vehicle accident.

Two of the vehicles involved in a collision on Route 88 at Holly Street in Lakewood are shown Wednesday afternoon, August 3, 2022. At least three people were injured and taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, one by medevac.
Two of the vehicles involved in a collision on Route 88 at Holly Street in Lakewood are shown Wednesday afternoon, August 3, 2022. At least three people were injured and taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center, one by medevac.

He recalled one time when an employee got into an accident at the intersection. "I said, 'Oh, my son just told me that he saw an accident there. That must have been yours,'" Hertz's employee replied, "No, no, no. This happened today. Your son told it to you two days ago."

He said cars speed down New Central Avenue, making it dangerous to turn onto local roads. He wants a sign on New Central Avenue prohibiting left turns onto Gudz Road.

It's a common story in Lakewood, which has experienced astounding growth this century. As Lakewood grew from 60,352 people in 2000 to 139,506 people in 2022, the number of car and accidents increased sharply, according to data from the state Department of Transportation.

In 2001, 2,337 motor vehicle accidents occurred in Lakewood. That number increased to 3,949 accidents by 2021 — a 69% increase — according the latest DOT data.

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As accidents increased, the number of people who died fluctuated. One person died in 2020, while 16 people died in 2017. In an average year, there are seven deaths.

According to Fatal Motor Vehicle Crash Reports by the State Police, seven people died in Lakewood in 2022 and nine people died so far in 2023.

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How are roadway improvements made?

Roadways are maintained and improved upon by the state, county and local governments. Engineering departments across the state follow standards published by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration called the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways.

According to Ocean County Engineer John Ernst, officials from the county, including Commissioner John P. Kelly, the liaison to the county’s Road Department and Engineering Department, meet with their municipal counterparts at the start of every year to “review potential hazards and upcoming road safety projects.”

He wrote in an email that those discussions are ongoing throughout the year.

According to Ernst, there are several factors involved in deciding where to install traffic signals. The factors include the number of crashes, traffic volume, pedestrian volume, school crossings, other traffic signals and the surrounding roads.

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From 2001 to 2021, about 40.6% of crashes have occurred at an intersection in Lakewood, according to the state Department of Transportation. The percentage of crashes at intersections in Lakewood is higher than the entire county during the same time period. Across all of Ocean County from 2001 to 2021, 30.4% of crashes have occurred at intersections.

After dipping during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the number of crashes at intersections in Lakewood spiked to 1,368 in 2021.

New Central Avenue is also known as County Route 31. From 2017 to 2021, 58 crashes occurred along New Central Avenue, according to crash data. At Gudz Road, 29 crashes occurred during the same time period.

A Jay's Bus Company bus is readied to be towed from Forest Avenue, just south of 11th Street, in Lakewood Tuesday morning, September 14, 2021, where it was involved in a collision with at least three other cars. The bus was traveling south on Forest picking up girls attending the Bais Yaakov high school.
A Jay's Bus Company bus is readied to be towed from Forest Avenue, just south of 11th Street, in Lakewood Tuesday morning, September 14, 2021, where it was involved in a collision with at least three other cars. The bus was traveling south on Forest picking up girls attending the Bais Yaakov high school.

Ernst wrote that as an interim measure, based on the accident history at Gudz Road and New Central Avenue, signage will be posted “to increase driver awareness of the intersection.”

He continued, “The county’s future plan, should a traffic signal be warranted, would be to install a temporary signal until a permanent signal can be designed and constructed, which could take up to a year.”

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Road project plans in Lakewood

According to a PowerPoint presentation by Ernst dated Nov. 15, Lakewood has installed two traffic lights in the last year.

They include lights at the intersection of North Hope Chapel Road (Route 639) and 14th Street and the intersection of West County Line Road and Teaberry Court.

Currently, traffic signals are being installed or are proposed to be installed at the intersections of:

  • Prospect Street and Massachusetts Avenue.

  • James Street and Williams Street.

  • Hope Chapel Road and Miller Road.

  • West County Line Road and Brookwood Parkway.

  • Locust Street and Vermont Avenue.

  • New Hampshire Avenue, Chestnut Street and Route 70.

Traffic safety improvements are also in the works for the intersections at:

  • Route 528 and Oberlin Avenue.

  • Route 528 and Cedar Bridge Avenue from Dr. Martin Luther King Drive to Vine Avenue.

Projects in design include:

  • New Hampshire Avenue improvements from Church Road to Route 70.

  • Reconstruction of Prospect Street from Cross Street to Route 9, including a traffic signal and two pedestrian crossings.

  • Reconstruction of Cross Street from Augusta Boulevard to Route 528, including four traffic signals.

  • Reconstruction of Route 526 from Apple Street to Route 549.

  • Traffic signal upgrade at New Hampshire Avenue and Ridge Road.

  • Traffic signal upgrade at James Street and Sunset Road.

  • Construction of traffic signals at the intersection East County Line Road and Park Avenue; New Central Avenue and Hillside Boulevard; and Route 526 and Cedarview Avenue.

  • Reconstruction and resurfacing of Squankum Road from East County Line Road to the Monmouth County boundary, Kennedy Boulevard and Laurelwood Avenue from West County Line Road to Route 9, including two traffic signals.

  • Reconstruction and resurfacing of New Central Avenue from North Hope Chapel Road to Route 528.

  • Reconstruction and resurfacing of Cedar Bridge Avenue from Vine Avenue to New Hampshire Avenue and East County Line Road from Route 9 to Park Place, including six traffic signals.

  • Reconstruction and resurfacing of North Hope Chapel Road from Florence Court to Miller Road and Joe Parker Road from County Line Road to Lanes Mill, including one traffic signal.

The county is also looking at seven different sections of Lakewood and considering 48 separate signals to be implemented under the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority’s Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Program.

According to Lakewood Township Engineer Tony Poklasny, the township is working on a list of road improvement projects.

The projects currently under construction include:

  • The installation of a new signal, drainage, ADA ramps, paving and crosswalks at the intersection of Park Avenue and East Seventh Street.

  • The installation of a new signal, drainage, ADA ramps, paving and crosswalks at the intersection of Monmouth Avenue and Fourth Street.

  • Paving and drainage improvements on Drake Road and Ridgeway Place.

  • Emergency pavement repair at Ridge Court and North Lake Drive.

  • Emergency drainage repair and pavement restoration at Whitmore Street.

  • Among segments of other streets including East Fifth Street, Vine Avenue and Vermont Avenue.

Potential construction projects under municipal jurisdiction that could begin in 2024 include:

  • Paving projects partially funded by NJ DOT's Local Transportation Projects Fund. The projects include Rosebank Street from Park Avenue to East End Avenue, Leonard Street from Park Avenue to East End Avenue and Park Avenue from East County Line Road to East Seventh Street.

  • Paving projects partially funded by NJ DOT Municipal Aid Grant. The projects include East Ninth Street from Park Avenue to East End Avenue, East Seventh Street from Park Avenue to Princeton Avenue and Sixth Street from Lexington Avenue to Mary's Lane.

  • Full reconstruction of August Drive and Brookfield Drive with pavement and drainage improvements.

  • Drainage and pavement improvements on Manetta Place.

  • Drainage and pavement improvements on Coral Avenue and Marlin Avenue.

The township is also waiting for state funding to pave East Fourth Street from Park Avenue to School Garden Street, Ridge Fourth Street from Ridge Avenue to East Fourth Street and Clover Street from Route 88 to School Garden Street.

Poklasny wrote that New Jersey American Water "has an aggressive plan for water/sanitary sewer main replacements," which will result in roads with new pavement after it completes its infrastructure work.

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: Lakewood crashes rise 69% in 20 years; here are the changes planned