Lakewood News Tidbits 2/24/06

NEW LAKEWOOD TRAFFIC LIGHT: APP: Route 9 is getting a new traffic light, a state Department of Transportation spokeswoman has confirmed.The new light -- first announced by Township Committeeman Robert W. Singer earlier this week -- will be at Route 9 and Locust Street, just north of Route 9's junction with Route 70, said Erin Phalon, a DOT spokeswoman.The light should be installed by year's end, Phalon said.The jumble of two state highways -- and local roads including Honey Locust Drive in Dover Township -- has made the intersection more dangerous in recent years, Lakewood officials and merchants say."(A traffic light) will be an immense help,'' said John P. Curley, manager of Jim Curley Pontiac-Buick-GMC, a car dealership at Route 9 and Locust Street.... ------------------------------------------------ CONRAIL TO CLOSE DOWN ROADWAY: APP: A rail line operator has threatened to close down Mary's Lane, an informal roadway from Fourth to Seventh streets.The road may be an illegal encroachment on private property, according to John Enright, a Conrail spokesman. If so, Conrail likely will ask the township to close off access to the road, Enright wrote this week in an e-mail interview.Conrail's response comes after township officials have publicly asked the company to address a spate of drivers who have driven their cars into the tracks. Committeeman Menashe Miller has said the intersection of Fourth Street and Mary's Lane has caused many drivers to damage their cars by driving into or over the railroad tracks.Miller wants curbing, signs or reflective lighting to warn drivers -- particularly at night -- of the crossing....Conrail is researching the problem and expects to make a decision shortly.