Route 9 In Berkeley To Be Paved In Spring 2022: NJDOT

BERKELEY, NJ — The New Jersey Department of Transportation has provided an update on the scheduled paving of Route 9 after Berkeley Township officials called on the agency to repave the road immediately last week.

During a council meeting on Sept. 27, Mayor Carmen Amato said residents have reported damage to their cars' suspensions, tires and rims after driving along the road that was slated to be repaved this past summer.

Though work began on the curbs, sidewalks and ramps in July, the milling and paving of Route 9 is not scheduled to begin until spring 2022, according to a spokesperson for the NJDOT.

“The application of HPTO is temperature sensitive. Milling, paving and application of the HPTO was always expected to begin in the spring of 2022,” Steve Schapiro said. “The goal is to complete the curb work, ADA ramps and guiderail improvements by the end of the year.”

The entire $9.1 million project includes lighting, traffic signal upgrades, construction of ADA compliant curbs, ramps and sidewalks, milling and paving, and application of High Performance Thin Overlay (HPTO) on approximately eight miles of Route 9 between Jones Road in Lacey and Longboat Avenue in Beachwood.

An unrelated but simultaneous New Jersey Natural Gas project delayed the NJDOT’s work on Route 9 over the summer.

“The New Jersey Natural Gas project must be finished before NJDOT can do our work. NJNG’s project is advancing, but is not yet complete. However, we are working wherever NJNG has finished,” Schapiro said.

Work in the summer also progressed slowly after some areas adjacent to the roadway were washed out and required redesign.

The entire project is anticipated to be complete by fall 2022, according to Schapiro.

“NJDOT is aware of the town’s concerns and is in the process of setting up a meeting with local officials to discuss the project,” he said.

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