TOMS RIVER – The last road closure will be done this week so that contractors can finish the intersection of Routes 37 and 166.
Route 166 will be closed between Route 37 and Mapletree Road, according to a press release from the State Department of Transportation. The closures will be overnight while crews from New Prince Concrete do the final paving.
The closures will take place from 9 p.m. until 6 a.m. every night this week until the morning of Friday, May 17.
Local access will be allowed for residents and businesses, but through traffic will be detoured.
If you are heading north:
- Take Route 37 east
- Go past Hooper Avenue and stay right following signs to CR549/Hooper Avenue north via the Lowell Avenue exit
- From Lowell Avenue turn right onto Terrace Avenue
- Turn right onto Hooper Avenue
- Go through the intersection with Route 37 and stay right to take the jughandle for Edken Avenue/Walnut Street
- Turn left at the stop sign at Edken Avenue, which becomes Walnut Street
- Take Walnut Street and turn right on Old Freehold Road
- Turn left on Mapletree to Route 166
If you are heading south:
- Turn left on Mapletree Road
- Turn right on Hooper Avenue
- Turn right on Route 37
- West to Route 166
Following the paving this week, there will be some landscaping and minor work taking place over the next few weeks, but it will have minimal impact to traffic.
The project upgraded the intersection with a raised median barrier, redesigned the roadway for safety reasons, improved the signal, constructed a new through lane to ease congestion, and improved drainage
The project was estimated to cost $11.7 million, but the total cost won’t be known until the end of the construction. According to the state, the work began in March of 2016.
Some store owners that rely on that intersection have told The Toms River Times that the construction has cut their businesses to the point of almost being non-viable, and the stress has impacted their personal lives as well. They criticized the state and the contractors for the delays – especially when there’s no work being done on nice days – and lack of communication.
