Speed Limit Reduction, Radar Proposed for Dunhams Corner Road

Township officials have proposed lowering the speed on Dunhams Corner Road from 40 MPH to 30 MPH, the installation of radar signs to monitor speed, and the narrowing of travel lanes in a plan to improve safety conditions.

The speed reduction would stretch along Dunhams Corner Road from the Ireland Brook Bridge to the intersection of Cranbury Road, according to the proposed ordinance.

In September, police conducted traffic counts on the road, measuring the number of cars that pass through the area daily, said Greg Potkulski, Director of Planning and Engineering for the township.

In the area of Young Israel, a site of heavy pedestrian activity, 13,000 vehicles were reported to have driven through the western stretch of the road, Potkulski said.

On the eastern side of Dunhams Corner Road, the traffic patterns showed 6,800 vehicles drove through the area.

Pedestrian numbers in the area of Young Israel were also high, with 581 pedestrians measured on Saturday, Sept. 29, 2012 between the hours of 8:45 a.m. and 12:15 p.m.

These pedestrians were seen in the area between Young Israel and the intersection of Ryders Lane, he said.

Additionally, 148 accidents were reported along the three mile stretch of Dunhams Corner Road in East Brunswick over the past three years, Potkulski said.

Based on the number of accidents, the volume of pedestrians and a lack of safe stopping distance on some intersecting roads, Potkulski said the recommendations he brought before the council were warranted.

The East Brunswick Police Department will also be asked to provide community education about safe driving and pedestrian habits, he said.

"A reduction of speed of this nature will require heavy enforcement by the police department," he said.

Dunhams Corner Road at Hardenburg Lane was the site of a fatal accident in September that claimed the lives of an East Brunswick couple and injured four other people.

Sari F. Horowitz and her husband, Ari D. Horowitz, both 51, were walking home from Young Israel when they were struck and killed at the intersection of Dunhams Corner Road and Hardenburg Lane.

Three additional pedestrians, including the couple's adult son, and the driver, Naglaa H. Armanious, 49, of East Brunswick, were also injured in the accident.

In addition to the proposed changes, the department has already made changes to the crosswalk signals in the vicinity of Young Israel to better accommodate pedestrians on the Saturday sabbath and holy days, he said.

The crosswalk signal at the intersection of Hardenberg Lane has already been changed, and the signal at the intersection of Ryders Lane and Dunhams Corner Road - a state operated signal  - should be altered by next week, Potkulski said.

A public hearing on the proposed changes has been scheduled for the Feb. 25 council meeting, scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. 

If the ordinance comes to a vote within the expected time frame and passes, it could go into effect around the end of March, said councilman Michael Hughes.

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