Towns asked to support changes to GSP, Rte. 18 Local councils urgedto act during NJDOT public comment period BY LAYLI WHYTE Staff Writer Representatives from the Middletown-based civic group, Lincroft Village Green Association (LVGA), recently appeared before several local councils asking for support of a plan that would divert heavy truck traffic from local roads. Last week, members of the group appeared before the Borough Councils of Red Bank, Tinton Falls and Eatontown, requesting that each municipality pass a resolution in favor of a plan that would allow trucks to drive on the Garden State Parkway up to Exit 117. According to a letter from LVGA co-presidents Carol Baker and Abe Littenberg which was read into the record at the council meetings, a state task force has proposed new truck routing regulations. The group is requesting that the state expand Exit 105 to include full and direct access to Route 18 and create a new entrance and exit to the northbound parkway from Wayside Road in Tinton Falls. The LVGA has also requested creation of a new exit on Route 18 at an extension of Laird Road in Middletown, allowing trucks to use the parkway up to Exit 117. Currently trucks traveling north are required to exit the parkway at Exit 105. The goal of the improvements, according to the letter, are to “lessen the amount of traffic traveling on Newman Springs Road (CR-520) and Middletown-Lincroft/Swimming River roads (CR-50). The proximity of both Brookdale Community College and the Garden State Parkway Exit 109 to Lincroft has caused an extensive amount of traffic and subsequently dangerous situations on our roads.” LVGA first made these recommendations in March 2004, and now that the state Department of Transportation has opened an official public comment period, the group is making another push for the changes. Red Bank Mayor Edward J. McKenna Jr. said at last week’s meeting of the Red Bank Borough Council that he would look into the possibility of passing a resolution as requested, but made no promises. “Even more troubling,” he said, “is the U.S. Supreme Court decision dealing with interstate commerce. The New Jersey League of Municipalities has been very proactive in pushing for legislation that would allow municipalities to limit truck traffic on local roads. That decision has been kicked around quite a bit.” McKenna said that municipalities do not currently have the right to limit local truck traffic themselves. “We’ll take a look at it,” he said. Eatontown Mayor Gerald Tarantolo said at Eatontown’s Borough Council meeting last week, that he was in favor of what LVGA was attempting to accomplish. “I am aware of all of these suggestions,” he said, “and I concur with all of what you’ve had to say. There is one other issue that we must consider in all of this and that is the Fort Monmouth issue. Obviously, transportation and traffic are major considerations of the new Fort Monmouth Authority. The fact that trucks have to exit at 105 causes a lot of problems on Routes 35 and 36.” Tarantolo said that he has had problems in the past with reaching the DOT concerning municipal traffic and road issues, but that he would support the LVGA proposal. “Getting the DOT to react is like pulling teeth,” he said, “but I concur with what you’ve said.” The DOT task force was formed following a U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruling last February which found that the state truck route rules were unconstitutional, according to DOT Commissioner Kris Kolluri. “We are appealing the decision to the [U.S.] Supreme Court,” Kolluri said in an interview Tuesday, “and we just released the new rules that were put together by the task force. Now it’s open for public comment.” Kolluri said that the court found that the state’s truck rules were written in such a way that interstate and intrastate trucks were treated differently. The task force is comprised of representatives from the League of Municipalities, the North Jersey Planning Authority, the New Jersey State Police, the New Jersey Motor Truck Association and mayors from several municipalities. According to the DOT Web site, the new routing rules would apply to both interstate and intrastate double-trailer truck combinations and 102-inch wide standard trucks. Kolluri said that one of the new regulations would be a hierarchy of routes for truck drivers, requiring them to drive on interstate highways, such as the New Jersey Turnpike and the Atlantic City Expressway, whenever possible. If that is not possible, trucks should travel on the New Jersey Access network, comprised of state highways and some county roadways, according to Kolluri. “They can travel on local roads only as a last resort,” he said, “with the exception of needing to get fuel, food and rest.” There will be a 60-day public comment period for the new rules from the task force, according to Kolluri, and although he said he is not aware of the proposal by LVGA, he is willing to consider all public comments. “I am very much interested in looking at their proposal,” he said. “To the extent that we can help, we are happy to look into any problems and come up with a solution.”