SOUTHERN OCEAN COUNTY commuters will be able to enjoy a new Park-N-Ride facility at Interchange 58 of the Garden State Parkway by late Spring of 2018.
“Today, the Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders has given approval to the county Engineer to advertise for the project,” said Ocean County Freeholder John P. Kelly, Director of Law and Public Safety. “This new facility will provide a designated paved and illuminated parking area which will bring major improvements for safety and convenience.”
Kelly, who serves as liaison to the County’s Engineering Department, noted the need for such a facility at this location is easily apparent.
“Commuters currently park on any available cleared roadside area near the interchange,” Kelly said. “In the absence of any other alternative, commuters, in some instances, have over the years been forced to leave their vehicles in a poorly lit dirt lot with pot holes located off Route 539. We will now provide them with a new Park-N-Ride facility.”
The project will include a total of 49 paved parking stalls. Also an internal bus loading and unloading area will be provided in anticipation of future bus service to this location.
“Ocean County is a commuter county,” said Ocean County Freeholder Director Joseph H. Vicari. “The County has been working in partnership with the state’s 9th Legislative District leaders and the New Jersey Turnpike Authority to advance this project. We are very pleased that it’s moving forward.”
Ocean County appropriated $400,000 for the facility and expects to be reimbursed for the cost of designing the facility, securing all the permits and ultimately constructing it under a proposal with the Turnpike Authority.
“I have been working with state Sen. Chris Connors, Assemblyman Brian Rumpf, Assemblywoman DiAnne Gove, Little Egg Harbor Township officials and the Turnpike Authority in order to create a park-n-ride facility at Interchange 58 in Little Egg Harbor Township,” Kelly said. “In addition to enhancing safety in the area, I expect this will promote carpooling.”
The new facility also will include stormwater upgrades and a lighting system that will be substantially maintenance free.
“There has been a demonstrated need in this area for a park and ride for a long time,” Kelly said. “This will be tremendously safer for people to leave their cars there and out of harm’s way.”
Kelly noted that Southern Ocean County is a growth area in Ocean County.
“This is an important regional transportation concept that we are advancing,” Kelly said. “We look forward to the day it is complete.”