Construction Continues On Vosseller Avenue, Expected To Reopen By End Of October

BRIDGEWATER, NJ — Just over a month since Hurricane Ida wreaked havoc on Bridgewater, emergency repair work continues one of the township's main arteries.

Vosseller Avenue, which connects Route 22 to Washington Valley Road, was the hardest hit roadway in the township from the storm.

"It's not as visually shocking as the Chimney Rock Road project but when inspectors went out... the entire wall that supports the road was gone," said Mayor Matthew Moench during the council meeting on Monday night.

Floodwaters completely destroyed one of the retaining walls, built in 2011, closest to Hillcrest Road and the other two sustained significant damage and erosion.

As a result, an $800,000 emergency appropriation and emergency contract was awarded on Sept. 9 to Vollers Excavating & Construction to repair the retaining wall on Voseller Avenue.

The contractor began work imminently to resolve this unsafe condition and get that section of Vosseller Avenue open as soon as possible.

The township has been working with engineers and professionals to not only replace the retaining walls but improve them.

"We are not just replacing them but connecting them so it doesn't fail in the future," said Bridgewater Spokesman Wells Winegar.

Work was expected to take two weeks but the conditions of the landscape have made it more difficult to complete. Currently, drilling work for the new retaining wall is underway by slow-moving due to the rocky terrain.

Moench said the township hopes to complete the project and reopen the roadway by mid to late October.

"It really depends on the weather and what they find as they drill in the new pylons," said Moench.

"Work is happening but we need to make sure the work is safe," said Moench.

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