Be Prepared To Stop: Full Traffic Signal Takes Effect In Manchester

MANCHESTER, NJ — A long-sought full traffic light at the intersection of Commonwealth Boulevard and Northampton Boulevard begins operation on Wednesday, Manchester Township police said.

The full signal replaces blinking lights that have been at the intersection for several years, and comes after years of complaints from the township to Ocean County officials about serious and fatal crashes at the intersection.

There were 38 crashes at or near the intersection of Northampton and Commonwealth boulevards from 2018 to June 30, 2022, two of which resulted in fatalities. There were 12 crashes at that intersection that required patients to be treated at the hospital, according to Manchester Township records.

After a June crash that killed a Jackson Township man, Manchester Mayor Robert Hudak again asked the Ocean County Engineering Department in July to give the intersection another look.

The blinking yellow signal on Commonwealth wasn't encouraging drivers to be cautious at the intersection, and drivers stopping on Northampton pulled into the path of oncoming traffic, not seeing it until too late. That was the case in the June crash; the Jackson man who was killed had stopped at Northampton, but pulled into the intersection, not seeing the vehicle coming north on Commonwealth.

The township has been trying to address concerns about the intersection for nearly 20 years, Hudak said, including making a request for a full traffic signal via a Township Council resolution in 2020.

This time, county officials agreed to the request.

"On or about August 31, 2022, the flashing signal at the intersection of Commonwealth Boulevard and Northampton Boulevard in Pine Lake Park will be changed to a full traffic signal," Manchester police said in a post on the department's Facebook page. "Please utilize additional caution while approaching this intersection and follow all traffic controls."