JACKSON – A cul-de-sac, easements or traffic calming devices were all considered to slow things down in a high traffic zone, but finding the right solution is back to the drawing board for a township professional.
Charles Cunliffe of T&M Associates was asked to speak during a recent Township Council meeting. An ordinance would change South Boston Road to a one-way street, and other options are being considered.
He said the 16 to 21 feet wide road from Bennetts Mills Road to Tilford Street currently “doesn’t meet the requirements for fire code and RSIS. (Residential Site Improvement Standards) for two-way traffic for emergency vehicles.”
He said in consulting with the township police department’s traffic safety unit it was deemed necessary to restrict traffic on that road “in a one-way direction from west to east so from Bennetts Mills to Tilford Street. This ordinance also came in response to the township having passed ordinances to convert a fire access (road) from Westlake Mews to Robin’s Estates to an actually fully improved right of way.”
“Our office, the engineer and the traffic safety unit raised concerns with that. If it was open that would create some ability for those residents to then go down South Boston toward Bennetts Mills Road. I think there is a history of accidents at that intersection and we felt restricting it one way from west to east would help alleviate some of those concerns,” Cunliffe stated.
He reported that several South Boston Road residents had reached out to the town within the last year with their concerns about making it one way. “There is a significant amount of cut through traffic that occurs on South Boston Road so making it one way is going to cut down that traffic by half.”
Cunliffe said that in regard to residents’ concerns about now having “to go to Tilford Street to Georgian and back out to Bennetts Mills to get to where they need to go, we looked at possible construction of a cul-de-sac to keep it a two way. That could cost anywhere from $500,000 to $600,000 in construction costs.”
Right of ways and easements might also be required for that scenario, Cunliffe remarked. Bollards were considered but they can’t be put in the middle of a public right of way and they would also potentially impact emergency response time. “Widening the road would have impact to storm water management.”
“There was also increased pedestrian activity at Robin’s Estates,” Cunliffe noted. “Multiple facets were looked into. We felt this was the most cost effective first step. This is just an ordinance. The council has the ability if they find it ineffective to repeal that ordinance. We just had an ordinance from 1979 that designated Andover Road as a one-way street and council saw 20 years later to repeal it because it was no longer applicable.”
Cunliffe added there were other options but “from a dollars and cents perspective we didn’t feel like the need to step to 100 if 25 or 15 could have a measurable impact from a cost-effective perspective.”
One of several area residents who opposed the ordinance, commented during the public hearing that in May of 2024 the Township Council approved a dedication of land which connected a private road connecting Westlake Mews to the back of a residential neighborhood. It was voted on and adopted by the council.
The Westlake Mews apartments were established 20 years ago and a gate was put along a wooded area in Tilford Street and South Boston Road. “The council president (then Jennifer Kuhn) gaslit the residents saying it was our fault for the speeding and excess cars driving through.”
“The gate was only to be for emergency access and to draw a property line since it is, after all, a gated community,” the resident said. “There are no traffic issues at the north gate entrance of Westlake which means the intention to eliminate traffic from the apartments is clearly is a classist one.”
“South Boston on the other hand has unnecessary through traffic which spills into the no outlet sections of a residential neighborhood.” She called the action a clear-cut example of social classism. “Make South Boston a private road not a one way.”
Council President Mordechai Burnstein said from listening to the residents who spoke, there were three competing issues involving the ordinance. He recommended it be tabled and that the other options that Cunliffe mentioned that were of a higher cost, be examined further.
“Robin’s Estates has a tremendous issue. I think there is a consensus that if something is going to help the entire neighborhood and alleviate some of the cut through traffic, I think it is something we can get the support to spend a little more than $100. I want to ask our engineer to give us another option,” Burnstein remarked.
Councilman Ken Bressi said, “this is history repeating itself.” He shared a story of when residents of Westlake “came into this room and were yelling about ‘these people, them people, those people’ who live in the (Westlake) Mews and they are driving through our property. I sat here for 15 minutes listening to it.”
“Part of that was my mother-in-law who was sitting there, living there. It was the same thing back then,” Bressi noted. “The same considerations were the problems back then. I think we need to find a better solution than this and table it. Let’s get it done right.”
“It has to be safe. The price doesn’t matter when it comes to life so let’s make it safe for everybody,” Councilman Giuseppe Palmeri said.
Cunliffe said he’d make a presentation about a cul-de-sac on South Boston Road and speed tables around the balance of the area during an upcoming council meeting.
Burnstein said he knew not everyone in that area would be pleased with whatever option was ultimately chosen but wanted to see a comprehensive plan that would alleviate the many multiple issues confronting drivers in that vicinity.
