New Jersey

[NJRoadfan]

I suspect that was going to NJ-18 south. Looks like their sign machine is missing a few fonts

[ekt8750]

Looks like it's new sign day.  Quick: Identify all the issues with this sign that should've been corrected before it even got on the truck:

Looks like the 1/2 is in Clearview too.

[PHLBOS]

Looks like it's new sign day.  Quick: Identify all the issues with this sign that should've been corrected before it even got on the truck:

Looks like the 1/2 is in Clearview too.

That's probably the only items that are in Clearview.  All the other text is either Aerial/Helvetica. 

Did the contractor use DRPA specs when selecting the font for the lettering?

[ekt8750]

Looks like it's new sign day.  Quick: Identify all the issues with this sign that should've been corrected before it even got on the truck:

Looks like the 1/2 is in Clearview too.

That's probably the only items that are in Clearview.  All the other text is either Aerial/Helvetica. 

Did the contractor use DRPA specs when selecting the font for the lettering?

If that were the case that 66 shield wouldn't be in a black box ala this monstrosity:

https://www.google.com/maps/@39.972658,-75.039628,3a,18.6y,90.63h,90.36t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s8qPf-e1tPHXnIka8ttWvoA!2e0

[Don'tKnowYet]

Looks like it's new sign day.  Quick: Identify all the issues with this sign that should've been corrected before it even got on the truck:

I wasn't aware that Route 66 went to Freehold.  Good to see NJDOT still living the dream.

[Kacie Jane]

There's not really a better control city to use. Imagine it says "66 WEST TO 33" and it makes perfect sense.

[Zeffy]

There's not really a better control city to use. Imagine it says "66 WEST TO 33" and it makes perfect sense.

This, and the fact that NJ 66 West is already signed to Freehold.

[jeffandnicole]

Blame Tinton Falls for not putting up more of a fight.

[PHLBOS]

Did the contractor use DRPA specs when selecting the font for the lettering?

If that were the case that 66 shield wouldn't be in a black box ala this monstrosity:

https://www.google.com/maps/@39.972658,-75.039628,3a,18.6y,90.63h,90.36t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1s8qPf-e1tPHXnIka8ttWvoA!2e0

Which is the reasoning why I placed the words for the lettering at the end of my previous post. 

I wasn't referring at all to the shield (the one item actually done right, though I, personally, would have went with Series D numeral).  Granted NJTA specs have since done away with the black box for BGS'/LGS'-mounted shields; not yet sure if/when NJDOT will start doing such.

[NE2]

I wasn't aware that Route 66 went to Freehold.  Good to see NJDOT still living the dream.

I wasn't aware people were still anal about control cities not being on the route.

[Mergingtraffic]

Anybody know the backstory of Abbott Ave in Palisades Park, NJ?  US-1/US-9/US-46 cuts right through it and the concrete looks original. Was it part of one of the US routes at one point?

Original concrete pavement looking north on Abbott Ave. Palisades Park, NJ. In foreground is the sidewalk cutting off the street. Abbott Ave was severed in half by US-46/US-1/US-9. by mergingtraffic, on Flickr

[Don'tKnowYet]

I wasn't aware that Route 66 went to Freehold.  Good to see NJDOT still living the dream.

I wasn't aware people were still anal about control cities not being on the route.

I wasn't aware that that was my point. It's not about pride. It's about having a sign be consistent with available map information for the benefit of the non-familiar usr. Period.

[Zeffy]

For those who missed it, I was recently featured in an "Ask @CommutingLarry" segment on NJ.com regarding the status of the US 206 Bypass .

As suspected, the future of the project is in jeopardy due to the lack of funding available. Phase 2 will be completed, which includes utility and grading work. Phase 3, which is the actual other segment of the bypass, is currently in the design phase, but the future of that is very much so unknown, and if it were my guess, I wouldn't expect it in the next 5 years.

Q: Reader Matthew asked about the status of the Route 206 bypass project.

"I physically saw them working on the bypass near the end of September. I thought they might've stopped for the winter, but it's spring now and there is no work being done on it. There hasn't been any news on the road itself, so I don't know the status of the project."

A:  Matthew, the $44 million bypass project is still alive. NJDOT spokesman Kevin Israel said the four-mile bypass, which takes Route 206 traffic around the busy "center" of Hillsborough and to Montgomery, is in the second of three phases. The second contract to do road grading and utility work is "winding down with work scheduled to be completed in the spring," Israel said. The first 1.7 mile section was opened by Gov. Chris Christie in October 2013.

A third and final contract to construct the two ends of the bypass is in the design phase, but it's future is cloudy. That contract isn't funded and depends on the renewal of the state's Transportation Trust Fund. That fund runs out of money to anything except pay off debt in 2016.     

"While the final portion of the project is scheduled to begin in the spring of 2017, without a long term TTF plan, this timetable is uncertain," Israel said. Work on the bypass was started in 2011.

[jeffandnicole]

I wouldn't be too worried about funding it.  Technically, every project, from the remaining phases of the Pulaski Skyway to changing a light bulb in a traffic light, would be impacted if there wasn't money pumped in to the TTF.  They'll figure it out...they ain't the first time they've cried poor regarding the TTF.

While the "contract isn't funded", that's due to the fact they haven't put out the bid yet.  There is money in the budget for it in FY17 & FY18, as you can see on about page 22 of the proposed 5 year NJDOT Transportation Program: http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/capital/tcp16/sec6/njdot5year.pdf .  Personally, the reporter used words that all but made it appear the sky was falling.

[Zeffy]

While the "contract isn't funded", that's due to the fact they haven't put out the bid yet.  There is money in the budget for it in FY17 & FY18, as you can see on about page 22 of the proposed 5 year NJDOT Transportation Program: http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/capital/tcp16/sec6/njdot5year.pdf .  Personally, the reporter used words that all but made it appear the sky was falling.

What does MPO stand for? The bypass is listed under (what I presume is) the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTPA) for that category. Main Project Organizer..?

[spooky]

MPO = Municipal Planning Organization

[jeffandnicole]

While the "contract isn't funded", that's due to the fact they haven't put out the bid yet.  There is money in the budget for it in FY17 & FY18, as you can see on about page 22 of the proposed 5 year NJDOT Transportation Program: http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/capital/tcp16/sec6/njdot5year.pdf .  Personally, the reporter used words that all but made it appear the sky was falling.

What does MPO stand for? The bypass is listed under (what I presume is) the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTPA) for that category. Main Project Organizer..?

There are 3 MPOs for New Jersey: 

DVRPC - Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (also serves 5 counties in PA)
SJTPO - South Jersey Transportation Planning Organization
NJTPA - North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority

The MPOs are kinda a middleman between the Federal Government and their funding, and NJDOT/NJ Transit and their needs (and I stress kinda, because even 100% state funded projects go thru the MPO as well).  If there's a project that is to be worked on, it must get the MPO's approval first.  Nearly every project sent to the MPO is given approval, from what I can tell, although the scope may change slightly. 

In a perfect world, the MPOs are supposed to organize their projects to improve the entire region...thus, if one project was to take place, it should be reviewed to determine traffic doesn't simply congest further down the line.  That deep planning rarely happens though.

Going back to the NJ Turnpike - while the initials are similar, the NJTA (NJ Turnpike Authority) has nothing to do with the NJTPA, other than securing any necessary funding.

[Pete from Boston]

MPO = Municipal Planning Organization

Close–Metropolitan Planning Organization.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_planning_organization

[Kacie Jane]

Blame Tinton Falls for not putting up more of a fight.

I'm not sure that's a decent option (though I'll gladly defer to the opinions of people who still live in New Jersey).  While 66 does in fact barely clip the southern limits of Tinton Falls, I think that when most people say/hear "Tinton Falls", they're thinking of an area fairly well north of there (i.e. around the 18/GSP/36 interchange).

I wasn't aware that Route 66 went to Freehold.  Good to see NJDOT still living the dream.

I wasn't aware people were still anal about control cities not being on the route.

I wasn't aware that that was my point. It's not about pride. It's about having a sign be consistent with available map information for the benefit of the non-familiar usr. Period.

How is it not consistent?  Any map will tell you that 66 goes towards Freehold (albeit not to/through).  And if you want to go from anywhere in the vicinity of 66 to Freehold, then 66 West is the road you want to take.

[02 Park Ave]

Are there any plans afoot to complete Route 18 down to Brielle?

[roadman65]

Blame Tinton Falls for not putting up more of a fight.

I'm not sure that's a decent option (though I'll gladly defer to the opinions of people who still live in New Jersey).  While 66 does in fact barely clip the southern limits of Tinton Falls, I think that when most people say/hear "Tinton Falls", they're thinking of an area fairly well north of there (i.e. around the 18/GSP/36 interchange).

I wasn't aware that Route 66 went to Freehold.  Good to see NJDOT still living the dream.

I wasn't aware people were still anal about control cities not being on the route.

I wasn't aware that that was my point. It's not about pride. It's about having a sign be consistent with available map information for the benefit of the non-familiar usr. Period.

How is it not consistent?  Any map will tell you that 66 goes towards Freehold (albeit not to/through).  And if you want to go from anywhere in the vicinity of 66 to Freehold, then 66 West is the road you want to take.

Montague is listed on mileage signs for NJ 23 northbound in many places, yet people when thinking of Montague, seem to call upon a place along US 206.  So as far as NJDOT is concerned these days, it is all about proper boundaries.

However, Freehold should be used as it does connect to NJ 33 which does go there.  I have no problem with that and if it causes redundancy in signage, so what!  How many consecutive exits on freeways do you see that use the same control cities out there?  In fact before FDOT changed guide signs on I -75 in Sarasota County, FL you had two exits in a row both signed for Northport.

[Alps]

Anybody know the backstory of Abbott Ave in Palisades Park, NJ?  US-1/US-9/US-46 cuts right through it and the concrete looks original. Was it part of one of the US routes at one point?

Original concrete pavement looking north on Abbott Ave. Palisades Park, NJ. In foreground is the sidewalk cutting off the street. Abbott Ave was severed in half by US-46/US-1/US-9. by mergingtraffic, on Flickr

Looking through Historic Aerials, I found my answer. Abbott Ave. was rebuilt at the time that US 1/9/46 was put through around 1930, at the same time that the 5th St. onramp was built to 46 west. I guess the state did the whole thing. Why, I don't know.

[Don'tKnowYet]

How is it not consistent?  Any map will tell you that 66 goes towards Freehold (albeit not to/through).  And if you want to go from anywhere in the vicinity of 66 to Freehold, then 66 West is the road you want to take.

shit. Here we go.  Put Trenton on the sign too.  66 West - Freehold -Trenton. Well done.

[bzakharin]

I noticed that on the ACE, approaching both 55 MPH zones (westbound at exit 7 and eastbound at the terminus), the "reduce speed ahead" signs were replaced with pictorial ones similar to this.

Is there a reason for this? Regulatory change?

[Pete from Boston]

I noticed that on the ACE, approaching both 55 MPH zones (westbound at exit 7 and eastbound at the terminus), the "reduce speed ahead" signs were replaced with pictorial ones similar to this.

Is there a reason for this? Regulatory change?

From http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/knowledge/faqs/faq_part2.htm#wsq2 :


Q: What happened to the "REDUCED SPEED ZONE AHEAD" sign in Chapter 2B?

A: The black on white regulatory sign "REDUCED SPEED ZONE AHEAD" in Chapter 2B of the 2000 MUTCD was deleted in the 2003 edition of the MUTCD and replaced with a new black on yellow diamond Speed Reduction warning sign (W3-5 and W3-5a) in Chapter 2C. This change was made because the message is an advance warning message, warning of a change in the regulatory speed ahead.