Neighbors Tell Committee: Make Shunpike Road Safer

COURT HOUSE — About 30 neighbors, who don’t usually attend municipal meetings, showed up at Township Hall on Mon., Nov. 1 to try to get the governing body to do something about what they feel is a dangerous stretch of road.
It was an unusually large turnout for a meeting before Election Day, when agendas are historically light.
But the neighbors weren’t there to address an agenda item. They live near the intersection of Oyster and Shunpike roads and believe that vehicles traveling in the area travel too fast.
The residents were urged to attend the meeting by a leaflet dropped in their mailboxes. It asked them to support the following:
• Lower speeds on Shunpike Road (County Road 620).
• Red lights at Oyster and Shunpike with blinking lights in both directions.
• Open Johnstown Lane to Honeysuckle.
Daniel Mihal, of Court House, addressed Committee. He said his wife and daughter were recently broadsided at the intersection. They especially think the 50 mph speed limit is too fast.
Mihal recounted a recent meeting between himself, Mayor Susan DeLanzo, Administrator Mark Mallett and county Engineer Dale Foster. He said officials were receptive to his ideas, but were not specific about when some safety improvements could be made.
Mihal said the group has a petition with 126 signatures requesting changes be made. In recent history, there have been 18 accidents on Shunpike, he said.
DeLanzo said the township had little power to change conditions on Shunpike because it is a county road, and thus the township has no jurisdiction over setting speed limits. She suggested the group attend a freeholder meeting (held the second and fourth Tuesdays at 7 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. respectively in the county Administration Building, 4 Moore Road) with their petition.
“It’s very frustrating,” she said.
DeLanzo said one measure they could take relatively soon would be to improve the “sight triangle” at the intersection by trimming or removing brush from the corners, as long as the property owners allow.
Township Solicitor James Pickering said the township or the county would request easements from homeowners to allow maintenance of those sight triangles.
DeLanzo said there were temporary “Slow Down” signs placed along Shunpike to address the speeding problem.
Last week, flashing message signs were placed north and south of the intersection. A Middle Township police car was also placed south of the intersection.
Caryn Rixey, whose son Kevin Lamb was killed in an accident near the intersection last year, addressed committee. She suggested the municipality take the property by “eminent domain.”
Pickering explained that eminent domain is only used as a last resort. He said the township must first seek an “amicable” agreement with the owners.
Terry D’Antonio, another neighbor, noted that a “Band-Aid®” fix could be the use of double yellow lines on Shunpike to eliminate passing and reduce speeding.
Committeeman Dan Lockwood noted that the township recently approved a resolution requesting that the state paint double yellow lines along the entire stretch of Route 47 within township borders. He suggested doing the same thing with the county for Shunpike.
Yvette Lavalette, who owns horse stables near the intersection, said she has to play “cat and mouse” getting out of her driveway. She said she was hit along the road several years ago as a pedestrian, breaking her neck and her back.
In the end, committee members agreed that the conditions on Shunpike near Oyster Road were unsatisfactory. They agreed to do what they could to alleviate the problems.