Three people died at this Wayne intersection. Here's the new bid to make it safe
WAYNE — The Township Council is expected this week to prohibit most turns at a treacherous intersection where at least three people were killed in accidents in the past decade.
Under a new ordinance, turning maneuvers at Armstrong Avenue and Hamburg Turnpike will be strictly limited.
Motorists will only be allowed to turn right onto Hamburg Turnpike. No turns will be permitted onto Armstrong Avenue, and no left turns will be permitted onto the turnpike, which is a county road.
The council will hold a public hearing and a final vote on the ordinance at its meeting Wednesday night.
Mayor Christopher Vergano said he met with several residents of Armstrong Avenue, who requested that something be done to control traffic on the street, which many use as a cut-through between Black Oak Ridge Road and Hamburg Turnpike.
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Vergano said they complained that their children now have fewer places to play because of the volume of cars zooming down the hill.
Armstrong Avenue is steep, and it lacks sidewalks. Visibility at the T-intersection is poor, Vergano said, due to a bend in the county road.
Forty accidents have occurred there in the past five years, Vergano said.
Two men were fatally injured when their cars collided near the intersection in December 2020.
Five years earlier, in June 2015, a motorcyclist — a 21-year-old township resident — headed south on Hamburg Turnpike was killed in a crash where a driver attempted a left turn onto Armstrong Avenue.
“This is really serious in terms of traffic safety,” said Councilman Jonathan Ettman, who serves the 6th Ward, in which the intersection is located.
“I know that we have concerns all over town,” he added, “but when you start talking about fatalities, you know you have a real problem on your hands.”
Ettman said the township administration should also consider installing a flashing light or a warning sign at the other end of Armstrong Avenue, where it meets Black Oak Ridge Road.
“You’re taking your life in your hands,” Ettman said. “That curve is extremely dangerous.”
Vergano said the Passaic County Board of Commissioners must pass a resolution to concur with the turning restrictions before they can be enforced.
Philip DeVencentis is a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: devencentis@northjersey.com
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Wayne weighs turn restrictions at fatal Hamburg Turnpike intersection
