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Residents urge Freehold Township to reconsider bike lanes on Stillwells Corner Road; township cites $326,000 grant constraints
Summary
At a March 10 Freehold Township Committee meeting, residents from Stillwells Corner Road pressed officials to remove or alter a bikeway element of an upcoming repaving project, arguing it would eliminate needed on-street parking and create safety and service-access problems; Township staff said the $326,000 NJDOT bikeways grant ties funding to the bikeway design and that changes could jeopardize the award.
Residents of Stillwells Corner Road pressed Freehold Township officials on March 10 to reconsider adding bike lanes as part of an upcoming repaving project, saying the change would remove on-street parking used for family gatherings, commercial vehicles and service access and could create safety problems for older residents and children.
"I frequently host gatherings for my large family and I was not informed that bike lanes would remove parking on my side of the road," said Joanne Grimes of 251 Stillwells Corner Road, who disputed an engineering finding that on-street parking was rarely used and said the change would be "unsafe and impractical" for guests and elderly visitors.
The Committee's Township Administrator, Pete Valesi, said the project is funded in part by a New Jersey Department of Transportation bikeways grant of $326,000 and that the grant award and design standards influenced selecting Stillwells Corner Road — a roadway the Township measured at roughly 40 feet wide — for a multimodal improvement that pairs paving with pedestrian and bicycle features. Valesi said rumble strips are included as a line item in contract bid documents but are not planned for installation unless needed, and that e-bikes regulated under evolving state law would be permitted to use bike lanes when operated legally.
Residents said they see very little bicycle traffic on the street, raised crash-history and high-speed driving concerns near the Stonehurst Boulevard intersection, and questioned where landscapers, delivery trucks and contractors would park if parking were restricted. "Many of these larger vehicles cannot safely fit in driveways," said Elizabeth Dirnfeld of 258 Stillwells Corner Road.
Valesi said that, after resident feedback, the Township is considering installing a bike lane on only one side of the road to reduce impacts while maintaining compliance with grant conditions. He added that the project has been bid and awarded and that removing or significantly changing the bikeway element at this stage would likely require a contract change order and legal and engineering review. "Any modifications must be carefully considered — the Township has only one opportunity to maintain eligibility for the NJDOT grant," he said.
Mayor Preston and other Committee members thanked residents for attending and indicated the Committee will review the concerns with the Township Engineer, Traffic Engineer and legal counsel before making a final decision. Valesi said striping is expected in the fall and that the Township would inform residents of developments prior to implementing changes.
What happens next: The Township said it will review public input and consult engineers and counsel about whether the bikeway element can be amended without triggering grant forfeiture or contract complications; no final action on the bike-lane design was taken on March 10.
