Goal for Traffic Through Town: 'We Are Trying to Make Bridgewater More Efficient'

Bridgewater officials are being cautious about encouraging new and varied development in a town that's already considered fairly built up. But as they study the way traffic will circulate through the community, they're putting an emphasis on smart growth–a planning principle meant to cut down on sprawl and encourage sustainable development.

To comply with state standards, and use a state-funded grant, the Bridgewater Township Planning Board worked through a circulation plan Tuesday. The plan makes recommendations for changing transportation and mobility options in the township. It's developed in accordance with Bridgewater's master plan, the document that sets for planning principles and helps shape the character of future development.

"This move was about making changes to the master plan," said Gordon Meth, traffic director for RBA Group, which put together the plan. He added that the master plan is required to be examined every six years..

Following discussions about parking and structures of roads, and the agreement to make several changes in wording, the Bridgewater Township Planning Board unanimously approved the circulation plan, and will hold a public hearing Sept. 27 at 7 p.m.

The circulation plan was funded by a grant from the New Jersey Office of Smart Growth. In making this kind of plan, Meth said, the township is focusing directly on improving smart growth in the township.

Board member Janine Dickey asked for a better understanding of smart growth, citing her belief that it is about creating more transit opportunities than pedestrian ones.

"I think these principles make a lot of sense, but if they are applied where the township is fully developed or has an existing character, we want to be careful about what the board does," she said.

Meth agreed that smart growth is about using transportation wisely, which is the goal of the circulation plan.

"Smart growth is about sustainability, and doing more with less," he said. "It is the ability to use transit in an effective manner, or walk when appropriate."

The purpose of the plan, Meth said is to make the Bridgewater transportation system more efficient.

"Bridgewater is mostly built up," he said. "The board seems proud of the way it has controlled development, and we are trying to find ways to increase choices in mobility."

Tuesday's meeting was the second held to discuss the circulation plan, with a previous one centering on discussing wording and descriptions in the first half of the document. This second session began with a discussion of walking and bicycle paths.

Several board members were concerned about a provision allowing parking spaces to be 9 feet for most land uses, but 8.5 feet for offices; they said that would allow for spaces that were too small.

Currently, the township maintains ordinances that require all spaces to be 9.5 feet in width.

"It's about getting in and out of the car, and car seats, and 9.5 feet is always better," Councilman Howard Norgalis said.

Chairman Alan Fross recommended that the township keep its 9.5-foot standard to maintain what it has always required in the past.

Meth said that state standards call for 8.5-foot wide spaces, but he would change it if the township preferred.

"I think nine is the typical standard for office buildings," he said. "But it would probably be easier if we say 9.5 feet. So we can leave it in the current ordinance and say there was no recommendation for change."

Board members said they were concerned about providing enough space, particularly with bigger vehicles, for drivers to get out and for people to deal with car seats and other obstacles.

An earlier discussion concerned the wording of one phrase that said all new commercial retail developments would be required to provide bicycle and pedestrian links to adjacent neighborhoods and commercial developments. Board member Glenn Petillo said he would rather use softer wording, such as "encourage" instead of "require."

But other board members, and Meth, did not agree.

"The master plan does not hold up in legal court," Meth said. "If we said 'require,' the municipality would have more leverage to say a commercial business must do it. Anytime we do something subjective, there is going to be an argument."

The board also discussed the use of traffic-calming measures, which are implemented to ensure that drivers travel at or below certain speeds on roadways without the need of police enforcement in the areas. Meth discussed several methods that are not invasive, but, in particular, emphasized that some features can become obsolete once used to often.

Multi-way stop signs, Meth said, are not usually effective in the long term for traffic calming.

"Everyone has to come to a complete stop with these," he said. "We worry that if we use those, and there is heavy traffic in the area, some drivers might roll through them and assume everyone else will stop. There is an aggravation feature when you have to figure out who will go through first."

In discussing parking structures in the township, Fross introduced a suggestion he had received from a resident concerning the possible building of two-level parking garages. One level, he said, could be a little below ground, while the other would be above.

But, Meth said, economically, those kinds of decks are not always viable for a town.

"We get more massive building in some areas with them, and the economics of the decks are terrible," he said. "They may price out some viable tenants in town."

Norgalis spoke against the idea from a safety point of view.

"People, especially women, often don't feel safe in parking decks," he said.

The board concluded that adding wording about these decks would not be appropriate for the township.

Fross further requested the elimination of several suggestions being made for mixed-use buildings in the township, creating mixed commercial-use areas throughout Bridgewater.

"I don't want a developer to use this as an opening to counter the land use element of our master plan," he said. "We're recommending changing things we spent hours on, and the parts about forced density can be eliminated, as well as about implementing a maximum front yard."

The document maintained that revisions to land use zoning in four separate locations around the township should encourage mixed commercial use; adjust standards for residential density, setback requirements and other items; consider implementing maximum front yards for consistency through established commercial and residential neighborhoods; and enact regulations for connectivity for new roads.

Instead, Fross said, he would be more comfortable stating that mixed commercial use in the township does not need to be addressed further, as it has already been discussed in the master plan.

"Maybe we don't need to get into specific recommendations, just say that we use smart growth philosophies, as many as feasible," he said.

Although Meth said he believed that statement to be "watered down," he agreed to eliminate the items and said that zoning regulations should always be reviewed to include as much smart growth as possible.

Holmes Court resident Andrew Leven said he was pleased with the changes the board made to the plan, but had two suggestions, to which the board agreed.

Basically, Leven said, he would like certain spots in the plan—such as descriptions of bicycle pathways and others—to include language saying the change was being made to improve quality of life issues.

"I have no problem with adding certain quality of life statements," Norgalis said.

With the plan approved and the public hearing set, Meth said he now must make the corrections to the plan as outlined by the planning board, and send it back to the members. The purpose of this work, he said, is to basically make recommendations for improving smart growth opportunities in town.

"We are trying to make Bridgewater more efficient," he said.