Fed up with an ongoing construction project that began three years ago, a local business owner has submitted the project for consideration by the Guinness Book of World Records.
“It’s all in good fun. We’re just trying to make the best out of it,” said Larry Schuster, owner of Schuster’s Toms River Car Wash on Route 166.
Schuster said the idea to submit the Route 166 construction project to Guinness as “the slowest ¼ mile of road construction ever” came to him out of nowhere, and he decided to post the screenshots of his email to the record holders for the rest of the public to enjoy.
According to the Guinness Book of World Records website, once a suggestion for a record is submitted, the Records Management Team reviews the standard application and then updates the applicant on if their record attempt is deemed acceptable and move on to the next round of judging.
The $11.8 million state-funded project to widen Route 166 from Old Freehold Road through Route 37 to Colfax Street began in 2016.
Work was halted during the Transportation Trust Fund shutdown between July and October 2016.
"Because of the shutdown, New Jersey Natural Gas moved on to other work and only restarted its work in the summer of 2017," said state Department of Transportation spokesman Matthew D. Saidel, earlier this year.
The shutdown caused an overall change in the project schedule, because the gas work needed to be completed prior to water utility relocation and beginning other roadwork, according to Saidel.
Work was originally expected to be complete in June 2018.
The Department of Transportation spokesman the project is now expected to be completed in the next several weeks at which time Route 166 will be returned to its final configuration adding a lane in each direction to ease congestion on the roadway.
NJDOT crews are currently working on drainage improvements by removing the pavement, to allow roughly 400 feet of 30 inch concrete pipe to be installed between Route 37 and Old Freehold Road. Once the pipe is in place, the contractor will complete the excavation in the area to prepare for the installation of a concrete median barrier curb, said spokesperson Mairin Bellack.
The ongoing construction has caused problems for local businesses, who have said that the construction has made it difficult for customers to reach them.
Schuster said part of the reason he made the Facebook post was to let customers know the car wash was open and operating.
“We’ve been hurting out here,” Shuster said, “but I understand the work needs to be done, and they’re working on it right now.
In the spring, a final paving of the road will take place across several overnight sessions, according to the NJDOT.
Olivia Rizzo may be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @LivRizz. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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