COURT HOUSE – Middle Township Committee took three traffic-related actions at its Aug. 17 meeting. The resolutions addressed separate traffic concerns but also displayed the complicated interplay of jurisdictions over municipal roads.
With an ordinance change, the municipality lowered Bayberry Drive’s speed limit, from Shellbay Avenue to Stone Harbor Boulevard, to 30 mph. An exception was made for the existing 25 mph stretch in the school zone.
Mayor Timothy Donohue said the change was a result of development in the area. The municipality could designate the new speed limit because the road is under municipal control.
In a second action, the committee adopted a resolution requesting that the state Department of Transportation conduct a speed survey along Route 9, from the entrance to the Cape May County Zoo to Avalon Boulevard. The action was in response to citizen complaints. The municipality can’t take action since Route 9 is a state road.
A resolution also passed that asked the county to conduct a traffic study to determine if a four-way stop is warranted at the intersection of Boyd Street and Hand Avenue. Part of that intersection is a county road.
According to the Regional Transportation Plan (https://bit.ly/30gLevi), the county has 1,046 miles of roadway, with jurisdiction spread across the state, county, and various municipalities. If one could take those miles and lay them end on end, a car could drive from Cape May to Memphis, Tennessee.
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