Route 34 Bridge Replacement Work Begins In Wall

WALL, NJ — Overnight lane closures on Route 34 are scheduled to begin Monday night as construction crews begin work to replace the bridge over the Edgar Felix Memorial Bikeway, the state Department of Transportation announced Monday afternoon.

Beginning at 8 p.m. Monday, Sept. 23 and continuing until 6 a.m., Tuesday, Green Construction will close the left lane on Route 34 in both directions to create a center work zone and shift traffic slightly to the right.

One lane of traffic will be maintained on Route 34 in both directions overnight between milepost 2.0 and 1.4 so the concrete center median can be removed and temporary pavement constructed in the median. Two lanes will be available each morning. The closure will be in place nightly Mondays through Fridays through the fall, the state DOT said. Some daytime work may be required between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. each day during construction.

The $9.7 million federally funded project will replace the Route 34 Bridge over the former Freehold and Jamesburg Railroad, which is now the Edgar Felix Memorial Bikeway. The bridge, which was built in 1935, is in poor condition. It will be replaced and widened, and the project will lower the profile of the road to improve the sight distance, the DOT said.

Currently, the road has two 10-foot lanes in each direction with 2-foot shoulders. The new bridge will have two standard 12-foot lanes in each direction and 10-foot wide shoulders. Also, a new culvert will be constructed under the bridge to accommodate the bike path. The project will be constructed in stages to minimize the impact on the public and is expected to be completed by the fall of 2020.

The lane closure on Route 34 will be between milepost 2.0 and 1.4 and will allow for the removal of the concrete center median and the construction of temporary pavement in the median. Some daytime work may be required between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. each day during construction, the DOT said.

The bike path will be closed and detoured for safety reasons but the DOT said work will be scheduled to minimize the duration of the bikeway detour. The precise timing of the work is subject to change due to weather or other factors.

Have a news tip? Email karen.wall@patch.com Follow Wall Patch on Facebook.