Funding Secured for Red Bank Road Improvements

When the county presented its plan for extensive road improvements to the area of Front and Broad Streets to Red Bank’s council last month, county Engineer Kevin Nugent identified one small problem: all of the money for the over budget project had yet to be found.

On Tuesday, the county announced that the additional $100,000 needed to meet the $600,000 total was secured following a commitment from the New Jersey Transportation and Planning Authority, according to Monmouth County Freeholder Thomas A. Arnone

The other half million in funding comes from federal sources.

“Without it the county, Red Bank, and possibly Riverview Medical Center might have had to raise the additional funding,” Arnone said in a statement. “I told (NJTPA) that these improvements are necessary to slow traffic and make Red Bank, which has a great downtown area, even more pedestrian friendly.”

The road improvements cover the area of Front Street from English Plaza to Riverview Medical Center and include several changes to promote pedestrian and vehicle safety, including bumped out sidewalks, a new traffic light, and lighted crosswalks near the hospital.

The most significant improvements, however, are planned for the intersection of Front and Broad Streets.

According to Nugent, the intersection will see a raised table installed to help slow drivers down marginally and also increase visibility. Like a an intersection-wide speed hump, the raised table at Front and Broad will slow drivers down about five miles per hour, giving pedestrians a more safe route to travel.

The intersection, described by county officials as dangerous, has been the site of several accidents over the years, Nugent said. And, while the route sees much ambulance traffic, the raised table should not affect response times.

The release also pegs the start of work for sometime in the spring of 2012. Previously, the county had said work could start as early as this year, though that’s been pushed back.