Pedestrians cross Ocean Terrace in Seaside Heights. (Photo: Daniel Nee)
Perhaps Seaside Heights most-traversed block, some residents say more precautions for pedestrians should be built into Ocean Terrace. Borough officials, however, say they have requested more pedestrian safety signs and had them denied by the county.
Ocean County has jurisdiction over Ocean Terrace, said Borough Administrator Christopher Vaz.
“I think it’s about time that we put pedestrian crossing signs on Ocean Terrace,” said David Lambert, a Hancock Avenue resident whose home faces the oceanside street. “My wife and I sit there every day on our porch, and I see near misses all the time.”
Getting pedestrian-friendly signage isn’t as easy as it sounds, however, officials say. Since the terrace is a county road, the municipal government of Seaside Heights cannot legally install signs itself, Vaz said. Last year, he said, the borough asked the county to place signs there.
“They said they didn’t want to put the signs that you see in the crosswalks on Ocean Terrace,” said Vaz. “We actually asked for the signs that are weighted at the bottom.”
Vaz said Seaside Heights will, once again, request the signs this off-season – especially since a new county engineer, John Ernst, has been appointed.
“We may want to renew the request, and perhaps the new engineer will look at it differently,” said Vaz.
Borough Attorney Jean Cipriani reiterated the borough’s lack of jurisdiction over signage on the roadway.
“We can only make the request,” she said. “The state does it on the state roads, and the county does it here.”
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