Council hopeful action will prevent accidents BY BRIAN DONAHUE Staff Writer OLD BRIDGE - Township officials are content with eliminating left turns at the site of a recent fatal accident while pressing the state for a traffic signal there. The Township Council last week adopted an ordinance prohibiting left turns at Spring Hill Road and Route 34, where 17-year-old Ashley Barton, who would have been a senior at Old Bridge High School this year, was killed in a car accident Sept. 5. The council had introduced the ordinance Oct. 23, despite an earlier report in the Suburban stating that the council adopted the measure that night. "Given the horrible accident that took place there, we felt that the left-turn movement is dangerous, and this is an action that we can take on our own to improve the safety of that intersection," council President Patrick Gillespie said last week. Police said the intersection is prone to accidents because it is situated on a hill with a sharp angle. It can be particularly treacherous during heavy traffic times and inclement weather, or for less-experienced drivers, officials said. Old Bridge Police Chief Thomas Collow said the "no left turn" plan involves the use of a series of auxiliary signs at Cottrell Road and Route 34, at Old Mill Road and Route 34, and on Spring Hill Road just before it intersects with Old Mill Road - all assisting motorists going north in finding safer ways to make the left turn. The idea was met with reservations from at least one council member during a previous meeting. Dennis Maher said he understands the need to improve safety there, but residents and businesses in the area will be adversely affected. He said traffic will effectively be diverted away from some of the businesses on Route 34, hurting or possibly closing them. But the majority of township officials said the safety measure is necessary while the township advocates for a traffic light on the state highway. "We don't want to inconvenience residents or businesses in that area," Gillespie said, "but when you weigh the issues, after that accident, safety has to come first. I think we did the right thing." So does the family of Ashley Barton. In a recent letter sent to the Suburban on behalf of the family, Barton's mother, Tracy Pulaski, thanked the council for the ordinance, stating: "While we wouldn't want to see any businesses inconvenienced, we also wouldn't want to see any more deaths or injuries." Mayor Jim Phillips said he considers the intersection "very dangerous," and he doesn't want to see his own daughters or anyone else making left turns there. "If the 'no left turn' can prevent just one accident, it's worth it," he said. He and Gillespie suggested a traffic signal is likely to be the long-term answer, though. "We're going to pursue a parallel course of action, asking the state to move as expeditiously as they can to perform a study there and to get the traffic light approved," Phillips said.