Route
322 Project
Gloucester
County
Background
Current development trends along
Route 322 are leading to increasing
traffic congestion that negatively
impacts the communities along the
| corridor.
The Route 322 corridor
passes through both
rural and suburbanized
areas as it moves through
Logan, Woolwich and
Harrison Townships. Various
studies have been conducted
in the past few years
to determine the right
solutions to lessen
congestion while supporting
community growth. |
A
bird's eye view of
the Route 322 corridor |
Project
description
The New Jersey Department of Transportation
(NJDOT) completed a comprehensive corridor
study in 2002 that resulted in recommendations
for short, mid and long term infrastructure
improvements. In 2007, the Delaware
Valley Regional Planning Commission
(DVRPC) completed a two-volume, 18-month
study of this stretch of Route 322
in Gloucester County. The DVRPC study
provides a framework plan to outline
the
| vision,
goals, policies and
land use management
techniques that support
a smart growth approach
to future development
and growth along the
corridor. Recommendations
include individualized
plans which promote NJFITness
goals including Lasting
Investments, Streets
for Communities and
Sensible Land Use and
Sustainability. |
Recommended scenario:
"Growing with Places
in Mind." Source:
DVRPC, 2007 |
Besides the framework
plan, NJDOT and Gloucester
County have recently proposed
improvements for the corridor
that include a bypass around
Mullica Hill and widening
of Route 322 through the
Richwood area of Harrison
Township. In addition,
the 2007 DVRPC study outlines
policy and implementation
strategies that should
be put into practice over
the next 10 years to combat
these trends and provide
a sustainable development
pattern. This implementation
requires a strong partnership
between NJDOT, Gloucester
County, the municipalities
and developers to ensure
the implementation of a
smart growth solution. 
Implementation strategies
matrix assigns actions
to agencies
Project
status
Key recommendations that support NJFIT outcomes
include promoting coordination among
local, county and state governments
to integrate land use and transportation
planning to support a sustainable growth
corridor. In addition, NJDOT is currently
conducting an analysis of the Route
322 corridor from Route 130 to Route
55 to engage the public and local agencies
in an effort to develop a united conceptual
plan for potential improvements to
Route 322 through Logan, Woolwich and
Harrison Townships. This effort will
build on the recommendations from the
2007 Framework Plan and earlier studies
completed on the corridor. A number
of projects included in the 2007 Framework
Plan that support the corridor vision
are planned or underway and are included
in the following community descriptions.
Logan Township
- Route 322 Redevelopment
Area (Bridgeport Airport
Development Area)
- I-295 to Stone Meetinghouse
Road (County Route 669)/Berkley
Drive
Harrison Township
- Tomlin Station Road (County
Route 607)
- Richwood Area
Woolwich Township
Logan Township
Logan Township experiences
high volumes of truck traffic
due to the close locations
of I-295 and the New Jersey
Turnpike (NJTP) interchanges.
The Township struggles
to preserve its rural village
character while it continues
to experience intense commercial
and industrial development.
Large portions of open
space have been designated
as redevelopment areas,
and study recommendations
suggest expanding the existing
village-style of Bridgeport
along the Route 322 corridor.
The airport area would
be redeveloped with a mix
of land uses that would
connect to Bridgeport through
a new network of local
streets providing access
between the two communities.
A number of land use and
zoning recommendations
have also been proposed
to support this concept.
These recommendations include
re-zoning to support residential,
recreational uses and protect
environmental resources.
Additional recommendations
include the establishment
of a Transportation Development
District and a Transfer
of Development Rights (TDR)
Ordinance to generate revenue
for transportation improvements
and to concentrate development
along the corridor to support
future transit. The implementation
of these recommendations
will produce NJFIT results
to create a new sense of
community and quality of
life for Logan Township.
Harrison
Township
Officials in Harrison Township have implemented
several of the recommendations that apply
to the section of Route 322 corridor
within their jurisdiction. Route 322
has been widened to four-lanes and the
intersection at Route 322/Lambs Road
and Route 322/Barnsboro Road in the Richwood
area have been realigned and upgraded.
A connector road between Harrisonville
Road and Richwood Road to separate local
traffic from the Route 322 corridor has
also been completed.
As the only village in Gloucester
County, Mullica Hill is recognized
by both State and National
Historic Registries. Four
bypass alternatives have
been evaluated to alleviate
summer shore traffic and
congested conditions experienced
throughout other times of
the year. The preferred alignment,
slated for construction in
early 2011, was identified
to be the least disruptive
to the community and will
respect the historic charm
of Mullica Hill. In early
2009, Mullica Hill was granted
economic stimulus funding
for a new traffic signal
and pedestrian crossing at
the intersection of Route
45 and the planned Route
322 bypass project. These
transportation solutions
support NJFIT by providing
a lasting investment that
will ensure Mullica Hill
remains economically vibrant.
Other improvements, including
the signalization of the
intersection of Tomlin Station
Road (County Route 607) and
Route 322, are also under
consideration. These intersection
upgrades will support higher
volumes of traffic at this
location which is important
to supporting and east-west
connection through Gloucester
County. Plan recommendations
also include land use changes
to promote mixed-use development
and a supporting local road
network.
Woolwich
Township
Recent growth pressures along the Route
322 corridor warranted local township
officials to evaluate, plan and designate
the corridor as a growth area to support
future development. In
coordination with NJDOT
and the New Jersey Office
of Smart Growth, several
tools were drafted and
later adopted by the township in 2007
to provide a sustainable approach to
future development. These
tools included a multi-modal
circulation plan, zoning
regulations and design standards, and
a TDR plan and ordinance (TDR will ensure
rural areas remain rural by directing
new development to designated growth
areas). In
addition, potential transportation
projects to support Woolwich's
growth strategy were also
| identified
in the 2007 DVRPC corridor
study. These projects
include establishing
a connection between
the commercial center
at Stone Meetinghouse
Road and the new proposed
street network in Woolwich,
upgrading the NJTP interchange
to a full interchange and the construction
of a new park and ride facility. A new
Towne Center with a mix of
retail and residential uses
is proposed along Route 322
in conjunction with these
transportation improvements.
|
Woolwich
Township Circulation
Plan |
NJFITness
goals advanced by the Route
322 Project are rated on
a scale of one to three
stars, with three stars
indicating the most strongly
pursued:
The
NJFIT tools that are most
applicable to this project
are starred:
|
