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Somerset County's NJTPA Board Member:
Freeholder Deputy Director
Peter Palmer |
Somerset County
is one of the subregions that are represented on the NJTPA Board of Trustees. The subregions consist of 13 counties and two cities. The Somerset County representative to the NJTPA is Freeholder Peter Palmer, who is also NJTPA Secretary and Chairman of the Freight Initiatives Committee.
This page provides an overview of Somerset County's involvement in the NJTPA, including links to transportation planning studies and projects funded through the NJTPA. An overview of the transportation planning process at the NJTPA is available in the Citizen’s Guide.
Description: Somerset County, with a population of
324,186,
is located in the heart of Central New Jersey. The county has various transportation links to the rest of the region, including interstates 78 and 287 and the Raritan Valley and Peapack Gladstone passenger lines. More information describing the county, its demographics and travel characteristics is available at the Somerset County Profile.
Somerset County Municipalities
Somerset County Website:
http://www.co.somerset.nj.us
County Planning Agency: Transportation planning for the County is the responsibility of the Somerset County Planning Board. The County's staff representative to the NJTPA Regional Transportation Advisory Committee is Walt Lane (908) 231-7021.
Current Transportation Projects in Somerset County: Transportation projects funded in Somerset County are listed in the NJTPA Transportation Improvement Program or TIP (links below). The TIP is a four-year agenda of improvement projects drawn from the NJTPA long-range Regional Transportation Plan. Projects in the TIP--including public transit, road, bridge, bicycle, pedestrian and freight-related projects--have completed planning and are ready for final design, land acquisition, and construction. The following are links to TIP projects:
- TIP Webpage – This link takes you to a table on the TIP webpage containing PDF files of project lists.
You may have to scroll to the link to Somerset County’s project list. Select the link to the date in Column 1 for the current TIP. Note: the files on this page change throughout the year. They include the adopted TIP (approved annually each July), revisions made to the adopted TIP and (when available) the draft TIP pending approval for the upcoming year. The TIP introduction provides a more detailed explanation.
- NOTIS – The NJTPA Online Transportation Information System - allows interactive searching for projects in particular locations or on particular routes, using maps and database queries. NOTIS includes projects in the currently adopted TIP as well as projects still at the planning stage (see “Projects Planned” below).
Projects Planned for Somerset County : The NJTPA Project Development Work Program (PDWP) evaluates the need for projects and develops alternative conceptual designs and routes. The PDWP contains a variety of work, from technical studies focusing on highly specific, localized issues to major corridor studies that cover large stretches of our regional transportation system. Projects are scored and ranked during development of the PDWP. When projects have passed through the PDWP, they are generally eligible for funding through the TIP. The following link should take you to Somerset County’s section in a PDF file. On some browsers, you may have to manually scroll to the county’s section on Page 18.
Local Safety Program: NJTPA's Local Safety Program provides funds for quick fix, high impact safety improvements on county and local roads. The program focuses on vehicular and pedestrian improvements of critical need that can be completed within a short period of time. Priority is given to projects that address locations identified as NJTPA safety priorities, NJDOT priorities, or are well supported by crash data analysis. (Interactive map)
The following project has been completed:
- Hamilton Street (CR 514) and Franklin Boulevard (CR 617) in Franklin Twp (FY 2010):
Intersection improvements including opposing left turn lanes, modified signal operations, signal pole relocation, repaving, ADA compliant curb ramps, countdown pedestrian signals ($188,000)
The following projects are either in planning, awaiting federal authorization or under construction:
- South Main Street (CR 527) and Main Street (CR 533) in Bound Brook, South Bound Brook, and Manville (FY 2011): Two overhead vehicle detector systems with dynamic advance warning signs ($197,000)
- Easton Avenue (CR 527) and Foxwood Drive in the Township of Franklin (FY 2012): Single Intersection improvements including dedicated left-turn lane, traffic signal upgrades, pedestrian countdown signals, signage ($263,250)
- North Bridge Street and Cliff Street (East/West) Intersection in the Borough of Somerville (FY 2012): Single Intersection improvements including new traffic signals, pedestrian countdown signals, striping, signage ($174,779)
High Risk Rural Roads Program: NJTPA's High Risk Rural Roads Program provides funds for quick-fix, safety improvements on rural roads that have been identified by NJDOT as having crash rates that exceed the NJTPA region's average for those functional classes of roadways.
The following projects are either in planning, awaiting federal authorization or under construction:
- New Centre Road (CR 627) from Auten Road to Roycefield Road in Hillsborough Township (FY 2012): Corridor improvements including high friction surface course, striping, bicycle safety grates ($490,948)
- River Road (CR 625) in Hillsborough Township (FY 2013): Road segment: Micro-mill roadway surface, safety edge, striping, rumble strips ($300,000)
Current Studies: Somerset County receives funding from the NJTPA for studies of transportation issues under the NJTPA Subregional Studies Program. The following study is currently being funded, and the links below should take you to detailed descriptions in Volume III of the UPWP. On some browsers, you may have to manually scroll to Pages 137.
Completed SSP Studies:
Regionwide Studies: The NJTPA sponsors studies of regionwide transportation issues, some of which may impact Somerset County. These studies can be found in Vol. I of the FY 2013 UPWP, Pages 63-71. On some browsers you may have to scroll to the appropriate page:
Subregion-Specific Data:
The NJTPA regional databank is a digital repository for all transportation and related data, stored and maintained on the NJTPA’s computer network. The regional databank assists staff, agency partners and subregions in planning initiatives by providing accurate, accessible transportation and related datasets necessary for informed analysis, decision-making and reporting.
Datasets are made available to partner agencies, subregions and the general public via posting on the Internet. This section contains subregion-specific data that is maintained in a geographic information system (GIS). Included are ArcGIS shapefile layers for land use/land cover (LULC), parks (two different shapefiles), water bodies (lakes and streams) and Highlands land use capability map zones. Additional data needs can be met by going to Data & Maps section of the NJTPA website or fulfillment of individual data requests.
- Land Use
- Parks
- Water bodies
- Freight Industry Profile
The NJTPA has developed a set of alternative
freight forecasts to support transportation, land
use, and economic development decisions. The
first step in the study process was to document
current baseline conditions. This Freight Profile
offers a snapshot of key metrics – Economy and
Land Uses, Freight Flows, and Freight
Transportation Networks in 2010 and in the
forecast year, 2040