BRICK, NJ — When the Wawa opened on Route 88 in Brick in November 2021, traffic issues arose immediately, sparked because drivers can turn left into the store from Route 88.
In the more than two years since, there have been multiple discussions about how to fix it.
The Brick Township Council passed a resolution in November 2021 asking the state Department of Transportation to ban left turns at that driveway — a resolution passed at the behest of the NJDOT, officials said at the time.
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In December 2022, the township’s Board of Adjustment approved an application to add a Popeye’s at the site. The approval, on a 4-3 vote, included a condition requiring developer JSM at Martin Boulevard to get permission from the NJDOT to eliminate left turns into and out of the Wawa.
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Both times it seemed the traffic jams and dangerous conditions — there were 11 crashes at that site in the first year, according to township planner Tara Paxton — would be remedied at last.
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With another year in the books, residents are asking about the status of the no left turn again.
At the Jan. 23 Brick Township Council meeting, Business Administrator Joanne Bergin told a resident that the town has followed up multiple times asking about the no-left-turn sign.
“It seems like such a simple thing,” Bergin said. “We keep hearing they’re working on it.”
That was the same message relayed to Patch by the NJDOT.
“The developer of the Wawa is developing the adjacent property,” said Stephen Schapiro, an NJDOT spokesman. “NJDOT is actively reviewing an application for that property that includes eliminating the left turn movements at the Wawa driveway.”
“The Department is working with the developer to come up with an acceptable design that will improve safety and maintain a level of access to the properties,” he said.
Schapiro said the NJDOT has been “in communication with the Brick Police Department, providing updates throughout 2022 and 2023 on the discussions between NJDOT and the developer,” and said town officials had been made aware as well.
He did not have a definitive timeframe for a sign to go up, however, so Brick Township residents will have to continue being patient.
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