The mayors of both West Windsor and Plainsboro have joined with four other towns yet again to urge the state to restore funding for the Penns Neck/Route 1 Project.
In a letter from the “coalition,” as they call themselves, Mayors Shing-Fu Hsueh and Peter Cantu joined the mayors of South Brunswick, the two Princetons, and Lawrence in letter to state Department of Transportation Commissioner James Simpson seeking to have the project restored to high priority status within the DOT’s capital program.
“Despite – and because of – a difficult economic climate, the Central Jersey Mayors’ Coalition believes that the economic vitality of the Route 1 Corridor is dependent upon the Penns Neck/Route 1 Project,” the mayors wrote. “The mayors are convinced that the project’s elimination of two adjacent traffic signals on a persistently and very severely congested roadway could unlock the region’s development potential, restoring the Route 1 corridor as an economic engine for New Jersey.”
The coalition is seeking a meeting with Simpson to explain the project’s importance.
The Penns Neck/Route 1 improvements, estimated to cost approximately $262 million, propose to remove traffic signals at Route 1’s intersections with Washington Road and Harrison Street, as well as the Vaughn Drive Connector between Washington Road and Alexander Road. The project would create a left-turn lane on Harrison Street as well as an upgrade of the signal equipment to allow for rescue vehicle light changing response.
“With the University Medical Center at Princeton relocating in 2011 to Plainsboro Township diagonally across from the Harrison Street/Route 1 intersection, it is crucial for public safety and emergency management that the region has unhampered east/west hospital access for the rescue squads and patients utilizing Harrison Street,” the letter states.
The letter also supports the implementation of the Bus Rapid Transit System for the region and implementation of the planned Route 1 improvements in South Brunswick.
