Trucks to the Right of Them, Trucks to the Left.....

So Let's Be Fair

I certainly respect Kingston residents' concerns about big trucks being allowed to use Route 27. All of their arguments against it are valid.

But let's be fair. If the Mayor and Council want to rise to Kingston's defense, then they should also take a good look at the problem elsewhere in the Township.

The Davidson Mill Road Committee completed its traffic study of the eastern portion of the Township in July, 2006. The report received a reply from the police/traffic department, but so far the Council has not taken up the issues.

Let's see. Kingston residents claim Route 27 is too narrow for trucks, it has no shoulders, it passes through residential areas, and that truck vibrations can damage historic buildings.

Deans-Rhode Hall Road is narrow, it has no shoulders, it passes through residential areas, and truck vibrations regularly shake homes.

Route 27 is a State road, and the Mayor seems willing to fight to protect its residents from trucks. Deans-Rhode Hall Road is a County road and the Township traffic department claims that because of that, there is no way to control the truck traffic.

At one point, the completion of Route 522 was supposedly going to take the trucks off residential roads in the east of town. The last time the question was brought up, County control over those roads was used to claim no promises could be made. Why does the Mayor and, I presume, the Council seem prepared to petition against State traffic regulations while not being willing to do the same on the County level?

While trucks rumble through residential areas in Deans, Dayton, and the rest of the Eastern Villages, we read that Kingston residents and the Mayor are ready to stand in opposition to trucks on 27.

Sure, Kingston residents deserve protection, but what about the rest of us?

It's Been A While

Waiting 'Til the Leaves Fall

PMK Engineering told us, back in July that they needed to wait until the leaves fell off the trees to do the aerial photography they needed to complete the flooding study in the swamp.

The leaves fell. November passed. December passed.

In January, I went before the Township Council and asked what was going on.

According to Matt Watkins, PMK would have a report on February 6. However, this was not a written report, but a verbal one.

Then, the newspapers published that PMK was going to be asking for more money for an aerial study. No explanation yet on that one.

Finally a representative of PMK contacted me to request a site visit of the flooded area.

By now, with the completion of the huge infiltration basins at the CNJ warehouse, there is no warehouse runoff crossing into the Park.

Does that mean the flooding is gone?

No way. A combination of runoff from the Turnpike and all the huge amounts of water that had flooded in before the CNJ completion have still left their mark on the area. The trees are under water and the right of way under the JCP&L lines is still flooded.

How can this be after so many months? 4.5 million gallons of water flooded into the Park after nearly every rainfall. The soils there are not particularly pourous, so after several episodes, I suspect the area just became supersaturated and the water table rose. The size of the flooded area has certainly lessened and although I haven't walked it recently, it probably no longer floods all the way into the woods. But, it's still there and will be until the heat of the summer or a drought absorbs it all.

I think the tour left a suitable impression on the PMK engineer, but only time will tell.

How much time?

Will the leaves be back before we know?

Stay tuned for updates.