Traffic Alert: Hubbard Avenue Closure 27, 8 am to 4pm

from Middletown Alerts:

A portion of Hubbard Avenue will be closed from 8am to 4pm on Saturday, Saturday, December 27th, weather permitting, so Monmouth County can make emergency repairs on the road. There will be no through traffic, but residents can access their properties. Thank you for your continued cooperation and patience. In addition, there will be intermittent lane closures on weekdays between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Hubbard Avenue and other roads on the Middletown side of the West Front Street Bridge. The work being is done by the County in preparation of the Jan closure of the West Front Street Bridge.

Traffic Alerts: Leonardville, Rt 520, Sunnyside

From Middletown Alerts:

The following information is provided by the Middletown Traffic Bureau. All information is subject to immediate change. Call 732-615-2287

Emergency Water Main Repairs on Leonardville Rd
Emergency water main repairs are being made on Leonardville Road near the Normandy Road overpass. Traffic is being detoured around the work. Repairs are expect to last through the evening.

The area south of Leonardville Road in the area of the Garret Hill development is currently without water. For information regarding water service call New Jersey American Water at 1-800-NJ AM WTR (1-800-652-6987)


County Route 520 Eastbound Closed Overnight Through December 19
County Route 520 is open to all traffic in both directions during the day.

Rt 520 Eastbound will be closed overnights only, 9pm to 5am, through Friday morning, December 19th. All expect local traffic will be diverted down Swimming River Road. Please plan alternate routes. This is a Middletown Sewer Authority project related to the installation of new sewer pipes.


Sunnyside Road Closed December 17, 8am to 12pm
Sunnyside Road will closed to through traffic while NJ Natural Gas and JF Keily Construction make improvements in the area on Wednesday, December 17, from 8am to noon. Detours in place. Please plan alternate routes.

Middletown Traffic Update: Rt 520, Hubbard, W Front

From Middletown Alerts:

The following information is provided by the Middletown Police Department Traffic Bureau. All
information is subject to immediate change. Call 732-615-2045 for more information.


County Route 520 Eastbound Closed Overnight Dec 15-18
County 520 is open to all traffic in both directions during the day.

Rt. 520 Eastbound will be closed overnight only, 9pm to 5am, starting Monday night, December 15th and ending Thursday morning, December 18th. All except local traffic will be diverted down Swimming River Road. Please plan alternate routes. This is a Middletown Sewer Authority project related to the installation of new sewer pipes.


Whispering Pines Drive and Jumping Brook Road
Construction continues daytime on these roads as part of the Middletown Sewerage Authority project related to the installation of new sewer pipes. Follow detours as posted.


Hubbard Avenue at Shadow Lake
Periodic closings and delays with one-way traffic on Hubbard Avenue at Shadow Lake near the spillway is expected weekdays until January 2015. This is a Monmouth County project related to emergency repair of the bridge. Detours are in place. Please plan alternate routes.


West Front Street Paving Rescheduled
The paving of West Front Street from Middletown-Lincroft Road to Half-Mile Road has been rescheduled until Spring 2015.

Middletown Traffic Advisories Dec 2-19

From Middletown Alerts:


All roadwork is subject to immediate change without notice. Call the Traffic Bureau at 732-615-2045 with questions.

Hubbard Avenue December 2
Hubbard Avenue is down to one lane on December 2, until 5pm with alternating traffic near the Shadow Lake Spillway. Monmouth County is making repairs to the small bridge at the Shadow Lake spillway. Detours are in place. Please seek alternate routes.

Period lane closures are also occurring the intersection of West Front Street and Hubbard Avenue on December 2, until 5pm for minor repairs and repaving. Detours are in place. Please seek alternate routes.

County Route 520 near Jumping Brook Road December 2-12
There is a lane shift in place on County Route 520 in the area of Jumping Brook Road. The lane shift is scheduled to occur through Friday, December 5.

Next week, December 8-12, there will be a full lane closure on Route 520 for Eastbound traffic. All expect local traffic will be diverted down Swimming River Road. This is a Middletown Sewer Authority project related to the installation of new sewer pipes. Please plan alternate routes.

Sunnyside Road Closed Through December 5
Sunnyside Road is closed to through traffic while NJ Natural Gas and JF Keily Construction make improvements in the area. The work is expected to continue through Friday, December 5. Detours in place. Please plan alternate routes.


West Front Street & Half Mile Road Construction December 8-9
Periodic lane closures will occur at the intersection of West Front Street and Half Mile Road December 8-9 while the water company works on water main valves. Detours are in place. Please seek alternate routes.

West Front Street Paving December 15-19
West Front Street will be paved from curb to curb from Middletown Lincroft Road to Half Mile Road December 15-19. Detours similar to those instituted during the water main replacement project will be in place. Please find alternate routes. The paving is the last leg of the New Jersey American Water main replacement project.

W. Front St Closure Begins Mon, 5/19

Well I can see this being a real pain in the butt!

Recently posted on Middletown Township website:

Starting Monday, May 19, West Front Street will be closed in both directions near Jumping Brook Bridge (near the Stevenson Tract) for approximately four weeks. Please follow the posted detour. Residents West of Jumping Brook Bridge will need to access their homes from the West. People East of the Bridge need to access their homes from the East. The Shady Oaks community should access their homes using Middletown-Lincroft Road during this time. Adjustments are being made to school bus stops to ensure affected students are picked up and dropped off safely. The closure is part of an ongoing New Jersey American Water project to install new a water main on West Front Street from Middletown-Lincroft Road to Half Mile Road.

Alert: Mtown Hurricane Recovery Update 9-2-11

JCP&L Update

JCP&L reports that 1,500 homes in Middletown are still without power. They expect that number to be reduced to 250 homes by the end of Friday. Additional updates are available through the JCP&L webpage below.

https://www.firstenergycorp.com/newsroom/news_releases.html

Emergency Brush Collection
Due to the volume of brush generated as a result of Hurricane Irene, an EMERGENCY BRUSH COLLECTION will occur town-wide. All brush must be placed curbside no later than Tuesday, September 6, 2011. Collection begins September 7, 2011. Do not mix leaves with brush. Regularly Scheduled Leaf Collection will occur in November.

The Middletown Recycling Center is open everyday until further notice to accept brush and recyclables from residents from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The center is located at 52 Kanes Lane, off Route 35.

Road Closure Update
Several high volume roadways within Middletown remain closed due to storm related damage.

Hubbard Avenue- CR 12 is closed between Alexander Drive and Park Place. Local traffic only can access neighborhood streets. River Plaza School is accessible from Navesink River Road side of the road closure.

Holland Road is closed between Red Hill Road and Laurel Avenue. There is access to AT&T entrance and Tatum Park from Red Hill Road side of closure. Residences located on Laurel Avenue side of Holland Road up to MT-34 bridge can be accessed from that end of Holland Road.

There is currently no timeline available for re-opening of these roadways.

Roads in the township that were flooded or impassable only because of tree parts are open. The township is working round the clock with JCP&L regarding locations that involved down wires. Other roadway closures related to Hurricane Irene include :

• Amhurst Avenue in Navesink
• Bamm Hollow Road at Bunker Hill

Middletown-Lincroft Road Is Open
Middletown-Lincroft Road has been reopened and water main construction temporarily suspended. This is due to other emergent roadway closures resulting from Hurricane Irene. Construction will resume when other roadways become available for travel. Further updates will be provided.

FEMA Disaster Assistance Update
At this time FEMA has not received a Presidential disaster declaration for Monmouth County. The Township has been advised by Monmouth County Emergency Management that federal and state assessment teams are continuing their work. Monmouth County had FEMA representatives in the county beginning Friday and will continue with the process tomorrow.

As a result, FEMA will not accept applications for disaster assistance from Monmouth County residents at this time. Currently, the designated New Jersey Counties are Atlantic County, Cape May County, Cumberland County, and Salem County. At this time no counties have been denied Disaster Assistance.

In the event that FEMA will accept applications for individual assistance, you will need the following information to apply.

• Your Social Security number.
• Current and pre-disaster address.
• A telephone number where you can be contacted.
• Insurance information.
• Total household annual income
• A routing and account number from your bank (only necessary if you want to have disaster assistance funds transferred directly into your bank account)
  • Lookup your bank routing number.
• A description of your losses that were caused by the disaster. (Middletown Emergency Management recommends that you document all your damages. Documentation can include photos and receipts.)

Monmouth County is Waiting for FEMA Assessment - Press Release
http://co.monmouth.nj.us/PressDetail.aspx?ID=918

Additional Disaster Assistance Information
http://www.fema.gov/assistance/index.shtm

Applicants Guide to Households & Individuals Program
http://www.fema.gov/pdf/assistance/process/help_after_disaster_english.pdf

Disaster Summary For FEMA-DR-4021, New Jersey
http://www.fema.gov/news/eventcounties.fema?id=15536

Be Alert For Gasoline Price Gouging, Home Repair Scams, Fraudulent Charities

"Tips for Flood Victims: How to Avoid Disaster-Related Scams"

As New Jersey prepares for Hurricane Irene, it is unfortunately necessary to remind consumers of the ugly truth that disasters often attract con artists and frauds.

The Division of Consumer Affairs advises consumers to be alert for potential abuses including gasoline price gouging, home repair scams, and fraudulent charity solicitations.

Gasoline price gouging: The Governor's declaration of a State of Emergency activates New Jersey's price gouging law. This law protects consumers who are preparing to evacuate or taking other action to protect themselves before an emergency, or preparing to recover after an emergency. The law prohibits the sale of merchandise, including fuel, at an "excessive price increase" during the State of Emergency or within 30 days of the termination of the State of Emergency. An excessive price increase is defined as an increase of 10 or more percent above the price at which the good or service was sold immediately prior to the State of Emergency; or, if there are costs imposed by the seller's supplier or additional costs of providing the goods, a price of 10 percent in the markup from cost, compared to the markup ordinarily applied by the seller. New Jersey law also prohibits gas stations from changing the retail price of motor fuel more than once in a 24 hour period. To report violations or complaints, consumers should contact the Division of Consumer Affairs at 800-242-5846 or www.NJConsumerAffairs.com

Home repair scams: In the wake of severe flooding incidents, fly-by-night home improvement contractors have been known to prey on individuals seeking to repair the damage to their homes. Often offering low prices and speedy work, they may leave consumers with shoddy or unfinished projects and homes that remain unsafe.

Follow these guidelines to protect yourself:

• Tips for Flood Victims: How to Avoid Disaster-Related Scams,
• Also available in Spanish

Before hiring a Home Improvement Contractor: Be sure to obtain the contractor's state registration number. Call the Division of Consumer Affairs at 800-242-5846 to learn whether the registration is still valid, and to learn if consumer complaints have been filed against the contractor. Demand a copy of the contractor's liability insurance policy, and call the insurer to learn whether the policy is still valid. Be sure to obtain a written estimate. Do not sign a contract or make a down payment until you are sure the contractor is trustworthy, and you fully understand the terms of the contract.

Fraudulent charity solicitations: After the March 2011 tsunami and nuclear disaster that affected Japan, at least one apparently fraudulent charity began sending out emails, misusing the name of a respected charitable organization and asking consumers to send donations via Western Union to a location in the Philippines. "Investigate before you donate," and follow these guidelines to learn about charities that solicit funds:

• Charitable Giving: Avoid Fraudulent Charities
• Also available in Spanish

Before donating to a charity: Find out whether the charity is registered to solicit funds in New Jersey, or is exempt from registration (certain religious and educational organizations, and charities who raise less than $10,000 annually in contributions, are exempt). Find out how, exactly the charity plans to use your money. Learn how much the charity spent during recent fiscal years on program costs, management costs, and fundraising. Learn about the charity's stated mission. The charity should provide this information to you; you can also obtain it by calling the Division of Consumer Affairs' Charities Registration Hotline at 973-504-6215, or the Charities Registration page at www.NJConsumerAffairs.gov

Road Conditions Update from Monmouth County 8/29/11

Flooding and power outages that were the result of Hurricane Irene continued to plague residents today, particularly with travel along local roads.

The severe flooding from 9 to 12 inches of rainfall over this past weekend caused two earthen dams to fail, and forced county officials to close five bridges that will be in need of major repair. Because those bridges and dams impacted the roads, detours will be necessary until those repairs can be made.

“Even though these closures will cause an inconvenience, residents should be pleased to learn that the county’s Department of Public Works and Engineering was well-prepared for the storm and have since committed the necessary resources to minimize the impact on us all.

For example, all of the county’s engineers have been reassigned to inspect the county’s 980 bridges; 34 of the most crucial structures were to be inspected by the end of today. In addition, personnel in several other divisions have been reassigned to assist with those inspections. They will be working 12-hour shifts for the remainder of this week to get the work done.

The earthen dams that failed and subsequent road closures are:

Hubbard Avenue at Shadow Lake in Middletown;

Ravine Drive at Lake Lefferts in Matawan.

The six bridges and roads that will be closed indefinitely include:

Jackson Mills Road over the Manasquan River in Freehold Township;

Allentown-Crosswicks Road over Doctor’s Creek in Upper Freehold Township;

Southard Avenue over the Manasquan River in Howell;

Swimming River Road over the Swimming River in Tinton Falls, and

Lake Drive over Takanassee Lake in Ocean Township.

Holland Road over Mahoras Creek in Middletown Township

“Fortunately, the designs for many of these bridges have already been completed in anticipation of replacing them, so we are that much closer to getting the work done,” said John W. Tobia, director of the county’s Department of Public Works and Engineering. “For the others, our in-house engineers will be working into the night to develop designs to advance these projects.”

“Our in-house engineers already met with Dam Safety officials from the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and contractors in the field to review the scope of the work,” County Engineer Joseph Ettore said. “Work on Ravine Drive will begin in the morning.”

Another concern residents may have is the number of traffic signals that are out due to continued power outages. As of this afternoon, Jersey Central Power & Light Co. has restored service to approximately 248,000 customers with about 346,000 customers still without power in northern and central New Jersey. In total, more than half of JCP&L’s customers have been affected.

JCP& L crews are making progress, but debris from downed trees and limbs and areas of heavy flooding are making restoration efforts challenging. Many of the outages associated with this storm are isolated and will require a significant number of repairs to bring all residents back in service.

JCP&L is focusing its initial repairs on efforts that can bring up the most customers. For example, if one repair can bring back 1,000 customers, that’s near the top of the list. There are thousands of smaller, localized repair requests; this work is labor-intensive and it will take at least several more days.

There are 1,200 FirstEnergy and JCP&L workers in New Jersey working on restoration efforts. In total, more than 4,000 FirstEnergy employees are involved in the effort.

“A number of Monmouth County intersections are on battery backup and they are still working, but there are many other intersections, particularly state intersections, that may have inoperable traffic signals,” Curley said. “Motorists should treat those intersections as a four-way stop.”

Visit www.visitmonmouth.com for more information

Hurricane Information from Monmouth County