Residents press council on truck traffic, traffic signals; officials say cameras can’t be used to issue fines

Residents at Tuesday’s meeting renewed complaints about tractor-trailer traffic and unsafe intersections, and asked the township to pursue changes including a traffic signal at Princeton Highlands and a roundabout at Weston and Mettlers Roads.

Shirley Tallman and other residents described frequent truck traffic on local streets and urged physical changes. Tallman suggested building a roundabout at the Weston–Mettlers corner to reduce speed and prevent dangerous maneuvers. "We have land on all four corners that we can buy into if we have to," Tallman said during public comment.

Township Manager Mister Vornlacher and the township’s traffic engineer responded with legal and technical limits. The manager explained that street cameras cannot be used to automatically identify vehicles and issue tickets: "The state of New Jersey has, prohibited the use of cameras for identifying cars to making traffic violations and greeting the license plate and issuing fines or tickets that way," he said. Instead, staff said cameras can be used as an investigative tool — to identify a truck, then review other camera footage and property records to determine where the vehicle may be coming from and to ask property owners to address driver behavior.

On the roundabout proposal, the township traffic professional explained national design requirements that affect feasibility. "According to the Federal Highway Administration, the design criteria for a roundabout requires the installation of... mountable curb," the engineer said, noting long-wheelbase fire trucks and commercial vehicles must be able to negotiate the intersection. He also noted that one corner at Weston and Mettlers is county open space, which limits available land for construction.

Separately, residents Prabhakar Jha and Vinod Gupta asked about the long-delayed request for a traffic signal at the Princeton Highlands/Route 27 intersection; they said initial approvals were given but the project had not yet been completed. Mayor Kramer said he has discussed the signal with staff and would call the head of the homeowners association to assess next steps.

Council members and staff encouraged residents to submit design ideas and noted that capital funding and the design-approval process can delay major projects. The engineer said a roundabout would be a capital project likely requiring design, approvals and funding in a future budget cycle, with construction unlikely within the current year.

Township officials also said the town has other corridor work under way — including the Easton Avenue corridor study — and encouraged residents to comment on ongoing design proposals posted online.