Route 13 is a short state highway in the communities of Point Pleasant and Bay Head, New Jersey, both of which are in Ocean County. The route consists of the Lovelandtown Bridge, a vertical-lift bridge over the Point Pleasant Canal, and a part of Bridge Avenue, which is mostly maintained by the county as County Route 632 (CR 632). The route was unsigned until new mileposts were installed in 2017. Route 13 was designated in the 1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering as a re-designation of Route 13E from Hollywood Boulevard to Bay Avenue.
The route was first assigned in 1938, when the state took over maintenance of the fifth segment of Ocean County Route 13 built in 1929, intending it to reach old Route 37 (now part of Route 35) in Bay Head from Beaver Dam Road, a distance of . The takeover did not reach that point, and the bridge and its approaches count for of the intended length. The original bridge collapsed in 1962, and a temporary structure was erected later that year. Planning for a permanent replacement bridge continued for several years until construction finally began in 1970. This structure opened in 1972, but closed immediately afterward due to a failure of the lift mechanism, which was fixed by the end of the year. In late 2004, the bridge and its approaches received a rehabilitation.
Route description
Route 13 begins at an intersection where CR 632 meets Hollywood Boulevard in Point Pleasant. There, the state-maintenance begins. The route heads eastward along Bridge Avenue, passing to the south of local businesses and to the north of local residences. There, Route 13 begins a curve to the northeast onto the Lovelandtown Bridge approach, passing a marina before reaching the Point Pleasant Canal (part of the Intracoastal Waterway) and heading onto a lift bridge called the Lovelandtown Bridge. After crossing the canal, Route 13 parallels Elm Avenue for a short distance before turning away to the southeast. The route heads into downtown Bay Head, where it reaches an intersection with Bay Avenue, which is its eastern terminus. CR 632 continues eastward to Route 35. Route 13 is concurrent with CR 632 for its entire length.
History Designation
Originally, the Lovelandtown Bridge was constructed in 1929 to create a continuous route along Bridge Avenue. Route 13 originated as an alignment of Ocean County Route 13-E, a highway maintained by the county. In 1938, the state legislated a takeover of the fifth segment of the county route, a portion of highway from old Route 37 (now part of Route 35) at Bay Head to an intersection with Beaver Dam Road, including the Lovelandtown Bridge. The route was to be long, and the designation came into effect on July 2, 1938. However, the extension to Route 37 was never constructed. In the 1953 renumbering, the state dropped the suffix and renumbered the bridge and its approaches as Route 13. (Incidentally, the portion of Route 37 within Bay Head—running from Point Pleasant to Seaside Heights—was renumbered as Route 35 during the same highway renumbering.)
Lovelandtown Bridge rebuild Collapse and demands for new bridge (1962–1964)
By 1960, the usefulness of the Lovelandtown Bridge came into question. The New Jersey State Highway Department felt that the bridge was structurally safe and able to support up to 20 tons (18.14 tonnes). However, local officials felt the bridge was unsafe, especially for vehicles such as school buses. Additionally, the bridge, which was supported by wooden pilings, was starting to fail and erode. The expected failure occurred during the Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962 on March 5, when the storm and tides on the Intracostal Waterway wiped out a section of the bridge. A temporary structure to replace the bridge opened in May 1962.
In the meantime, proposals were made for a permanent replacement structure. Early proposals noted the bridge would take about three months to rebuild. Point Pleasant Police Chief William Beecroft, who voiced concerns about the integrity of the bridge in 1960 and 1962, proposed a new tunnel across the Intracoastal Waterway to replace the Route 88 and Route 13 bridges. Beecroft speculated that the new tunnel would be cheaper to build in the long run and make things easier for emergency vehicles who would not have to deal with drawbridges. The State Highway Department considered a new tunnel for Route 13, but quickly discarded the idea by October due to excessive costs, though Beecroft would bring it up again as an option if there were a hearing.
In November 1962, the State Highway Department made plans to build a new high fixed structure over the waterway. However, this plan was opposed by multiple agencies and individuals because yachts would be unable to use the waterway with a fixed structure. One of these was Assemblyman William T. Hiering, a Republican from Ocean County who asked the United States Army Corps of Engineers to hold a public hearing on such a bridge; this hearing would occur on December 27. However, the State Highway Department also supported an option for a high drawbridge that would accommodate yacht users and only have to be opened once in a while. Such a plan would cost about $2 million.
By February 1964, the State Highway Department switched its plan to a vertical-lift bridge. This new bridge would be able to open to as high as in the air and allow room for yachts to go through. The delay in action by the Highway Department was being slammed by the borough of Point Pleasant by December 1964. Dr. Ronald V. Crescenzo, one of the members of the borough council wanted a bus ban over the replaced structure until a new one could be built. The borough also wanted to be absolved of any responsibility and liability in case of another structural failure. They did, however, support a new vertical-lift bridge with the high lift that could raise to in the air.
Added pressure (1965–1966)
More complaints came from higher officials in September 1965, when a resident of Fair Lawn drove off the temporary Lovelandtown Bridge and died. The car crashed through the wooden railings of the bridge and landed in the canal below. The driver's death sparked the attention of State Senator Wayne Dumont and Point Pleasant Mayor Walter B. Brown; they deemed the bridge a traffic hazard and pressured Governor Richard J. Hughes to speed up construction. Dumont also claimed that the previous governor's administration provided money for the new bridge. However, the State Highway Department claimed that no money was ever allocated for such use.
In December 1965, the borough of Point Pleasant noted that meetings between them, Ocean County and the State Highway Department would be conducted on December 9 or December 16, to discuss a new Lovelandtown Bridge. Chief Beecroft, who previously wanted a tunnel crossing, noted buses were taken off the temporary structure for safety. By December 3, Point Pleasant announced that the meeting would take place on December 16.
In January 1966, the New Jersey State Conservation Department approved the plans of the State Highway Department for the construction of a new Lovelandtown Bridge. This new bridge would need a horizontal clearance and a vertical clearance of to help navigation through the canal. Bridge Avenue would be moved north for the new bridge, with the construction of a new alignment. This would help eliminate curves that were considered dangerous to the old bridge. However, the bridge was still subject to the approval of a United States Engineer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. These plans reached the United States Army Corps of Engineers in April 1966, when they announced openings for anyone who had opposition to the project. By the deadline of May 16, no objections were filed with the engineers on the new bridge.
In July 1966, the state announced that they were ready to begin construction of a new Lovelandtown Bridge, but they would have to wait until the Army Corps of Engineers announced their full approval of the project. The state felt that a new bridge would not be finished until 1968, but would at least get approval within a span of four to six weeks. However, the bridge alignment changed in April to have an vertical clearance due to new regulations for future expansion of the canal.
Design and funding problems (1967–1968) However, despite the four to six week timeline, the Army Corps of Engineers did not sign off on the new Lovelandtown Bridge until January 26, 1967. The new bridge would have a vertical clearance of when closed and when raised. The span would be wide for boats and barges to clear. The newly renamed New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) said design, planning and construction would take about 18 months. Mayor Brown noted that he was happy and was willing to even bring his shovel.
Survey work by the Army Corps of Engineers began in July 1967, for the design of the new bridge over the waterway. NJDOT also hired a New York firm to do the survey work. Less than a month later, the mechanisms to help open the Lovelandtown Bridge to marine traffic broke on August 16, resulting in a seven-hour closure of the bridge and several days of repairs. The Army Corps completed their survey work in the canal in November 1967.
By December 1967, NJDOT moved test borings to the Bureau of Navigation offices to make plans for the new Lovelandtown Bridge ones. The offices would end up being relocated as part of the construction of the new bridge, due to be finished in 1971. The Board of Adjustment chair for the borough of Point Pleasant noted that they should pressure the state to move their schedule up in response to the collapse of the Silver Bridge in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. However, the state announced that they did move their timeline up and expected a replacement to be finished now in 1970, since design problems were avoided during that period. The state also noted that the new bridge would require the condemnation of as many as 20 houses. Drilling into the Point Pleasant Canal began on January 2, 1968, when NJDOT inserted borings for new bridge supports.
However, by September 1968, Point Pleasant wanted to know why the $2 million set aside by the state for construction of the new bridge had been shifted to help facilitate the Aldene Plan in Union County. The new bridge, now costing $4 million (1968 USD), no longer was in the funding for the state. The borough demanded an answer from Governor Hughes, which did not come with answers. Hughes noted that if the state voters passed a new bond issue, the Lovelandtown Bridge would be a top priority. This was in direct conflict with a promise by the State Highway Department in 1966, that money for the new bridge would be non-reliant on a bond issue or other strings. The borough demanded that Commissioner David Goldberg meet with borough officials to get the missing answers.
That meeting would be scheduled for October 8, 1968, at the offices for Goldberg in Trenton, with Mayor Brown heading out to discuss the problems. Brown noted to the press that he wanted $4 million of $114 million earmarked for new railcars as part of the Aldene Plan to be shifted to a new bridge. He also noted that multiple members of the State Legislature, including Senator Hiering, along with Benjamin Mabie and John Brown of the Assembly would introduce legislation to help get funding earmarked immediately for the bridge.