A Decade After Route 35 Rebuild, N.J. Plans Pavement Overlay to Extend Roadway’s Life

Seasonal changes to traffic lights and speed limits were made Friday along Route 35. (Photo: Daniel Nee)

The multi-year project to rebuild Route 35 – long-planned, but heightened in urgency after Superstorm Sandy – is now a decade old. During the project, the state highway was completely excavated and ripped from the ground, and its signature concrete surface was replaced from scratch with a newly-built asphalt roadway. Now, the state Department of Transportation is seeking to extend the life of the highway.

Officials in each of the communities that make up Ocean County’s northern barrier island recently received notice that the state would be embarking on what is known as a Thin Overlay Pavement Preservation Program, which consists of several methods of preserving the condition of a roadway and extending its useful life before a formal repaving project is required.

The work, according to the notice, will be performed during the off-peak season, beginning in the fall of 2025. The entire project may take until the fall of 2026 to complete, however the work will be performed primarily at night and in phases in order to avoid traffic jams. Detours will be likely during construction. The project will be performed on both the northbound and southbound lanes of the highway.

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Route 35 South. (Photo: Daniel Nee)

In the case of Route 35, the state will utilize a technique known as “High Performance Thin Overlay,” once of several methods that can be tapped for the preservation of roadways. According to NJDOT, the thin overlay method works by laying down a thin application of a fine graded, 6.25-mm polymer of modified hot-mixed asphalt. It is typically placed at a thickness of approximately 1-inch, but can be paved in thicknesses ranging a half-inch to 1.5-inches. The thin layering treatments provide a “waterproof, skid resistant, smooth surface that improves ride quality and reduces tire-pavement noise,” according to the NJDOT’s description.

The road preservation program will be performed in Bay Head, Mantoloking, Brick Township, Toms River Township, Lavallette, Seaside Heights, Seaside Park and Berkeley Township (South Seaside Park).