I wanted to draw attention to something the Turnpike Authority said in our online story on Thursday about Route 92:
“The bottom line is that the whole Route 92 project is not really a priority to us right now,” he said. “Right now, the main priority is the widening of the turnpike.”
This was the reason, he said, that $175 million of the $181.5 million originally earmarked for Route 92 was diverted to the turnpike widening project in December 2005. With the upcoming direct connection between the Pennsylvania Turnpike and Interstate 95, Mr. Orlando said priorities have changed and it’s essential that the widening project be fast-tracked to handle increased demand.
With an eye toward awarding contracts for the final design of the widening project at the end of this year or in the first quarter of 2007, Mr. Orlando said the Turnpike Authority is in the process of expediting the DEP permitting process for that project. Ideally, he said, the widening project would begin in late 2009 with a projected completion in 2013.
What does this mean? Basically, the highway is dead — for now. As one of the locals said to me Thursday on the phone, this thing is still lurking, but now we may all be in nursing homes before it resurfaces. Then again, the state has been known to spend money it doesn’t have, so it could come back at any time.
This is my way of reminding everyone to stay alert and remain vigilant.
South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick
Hank Kalet 