rap #65 03/31/10
PINEWALD-KESWICK ROAD TO BE REPAVED THIS SUMMER
PINEWALD-KESWICK ROAD in Berkeley and Manchester townships will be reconstructed this summer, using a new system and
materials that will not only save money, but will allow the work to be done in a quarter of the time of a typical road
reconstruction.
The new process places both a new basecoat and topcoat of asphalt on the roadway. A layer of geotextile fabric made
of a plastic material is laid between the two coatings of asphalt, resulting in a much stronger road surface.
“We can have this work done in less time without the need for closing the road and detouring traffic,” said
Freeholder John P. Kelly, Director of Law and Public Safety for the county.
Work on the 5.5-mile stretch of Road from Dover Road to Schoolhouse Road will begin this summer and be completed in
about three months.
“Normally, a project like this would take more than a year,” Kelly said.
The project also comes with a cheaper price tag.
“We estimate the cost at about $2.6 million,” Kelly said. “A normal reconstruction of this length would cost at
least double that amount.”
The Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders is expected to seek bids for the project later in April.
The life expectancy of the new pavement is also on par with more traditional methods, said Freeholder Director
James F. Lacey.
“We estimate this road won’t need another major resurfacing for at least 20 years,” said Lacey, who is also liaison
to the Ocean County Road Department.
The work will include some alternating lane closings, but the road will remain open during construction and there
should be no over night detours.
Lacey said the work will also begin after the annual Ocean County Fair in July, which is held at the Robert J.
Miller Airpark on Pinewald-Keswick Road.
“We will not be interfering with the fair traffic,” Lacey said.
The project will also include the restriping of the Pinewald-Keswick Road and Township Line Road intersection.
“We will be adding left and right turn lanes in preparation for a new traffic signal that will be added to the
intersection at a future date,” Lacey said.
