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of
Somerville at New Jersey Route 28. To improve traffic flow the intersection of the roads was turned into a traffic circle. The circle was built in the 1930s by the New Jersey Highway Department. The Somerville Circle was among many others built in New Jersey at the time, because the Highway Department believed that circles were an effective way to move traffic through three or more roadways.
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In
September 1991 construction began on a project to improve the circle. The project included an overpass that allows Route 202 to bypass the circle, and the inclusion of traffic signals. The project was completed in 1994. In the year after the overpass opened the circle saw 302 traffic accidents. In
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In the late 1920s New Jersey was planning a series of highways to allow out of state traffic to bypass towns and called for counties in the state to build and maintain another series of roads for local traffic. Routes 202 and 206 were part of this plan and the design called for them to intersect west
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Despite the state spending US$ 26 million on the circle, local officials called for it to be bisected and turned into a five-way intersection with traffic lights. They asserted that the circle is still confusing, but no major changes have occurred since 1995. In 2007, the circle had 294 traffic
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ahead signs for approaching vehicles in
February 1995. The signs made little difference and the accident rate remained high. Another attempt to make the circle safer came in November when the Transportation Department painted lane lines and arrows on the roads and replaced a yield sign with a
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At the time the area around the circle was mostly rural, with the circle being named after
Somerville because it was the nearest largest town. In its early days, the area included the Raritan Valley Inn, a place that was frequented by
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186:. The circle was built in the 1930s when the area was rural, but as the region became more populated the circle became notorious for being confusing for drivers and a frequent spot for
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was also located by the circle. Frelinghuysen had supported the construction of the circle, but moved away years later because of noise from the traffic.
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At-grade view of the circle looking west from Route 28, US 202 passes over the circle on the overpass
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an attempt to lower the accident rate the New Jersey
Department of Transportation installed
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the area began to become more developed. In 1956 New Jersey's first
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occur on the
Raritan side of the circle than the Bridgewater side.
453:"Road and Rail; Straightening Out the Perilous Somerville Circle"
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in the United States. The circle lies at the intersection of
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The
Somerville Circle is located on the border between
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Road intersection in
Somerset County, New Jersey, U.S.
398:"Squaring Traffic Circles With Lights and Bridges"
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310:. The new changes resulted in fewer accidents.
510:Transportation in Somerset County, New Jersey
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230:no longer considers the Somerville Circle a
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425:. Rutgers University Press. p. 755.
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228:New Jersey Department of Transportation
196:New Jersey Department of Transportation
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421:Lurie, Maxine N.; Marc Mappen (2004).
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372:. The History Press. pp. 97–101.
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480:List of traffic circles in New Jersey
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340:Rundquist, Jeanette (2008-04-28).
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370:Remembering Somerville New Jersey
276:Joseph Sherman Frelinghuysen, Sr.
274:. The home of New Jersey Senator
495:Bridgewater Township, New Jersey
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342:"Somerville's one-ring circus"
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505:Traffic circles in New Jersey
396:Peterson, Iver (1991-11-12).
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214:The Somerville Circle joins
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451:Newman, Andy (1996-01-28).
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423:Encyclopedia of New Jersey
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158:located on the border of
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291:Somerset Shopping Center
368:Havens, Jessie (2008).
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85:40.57556°N 74.62889°W
36:The Somerville Circle
243:Bridgewater Township
160:Bridgewater Township
52:Bridgewater Township
500:Raritan, New Jersey
247:Raritan, New Jersey
224:New Jersey Route 28
184:New Jersey Route 28
90:40.57556; -74.62889
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56:Raritan, New Jersey
457:The New York Times
402:The New York Times
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379:978-1-59629-547-6
255:traffic accidents
188:traffic accidents
152:Somerville Circle
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19:Road junction
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283:World War II
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136:Construction
314:accidents.
202:Description
121:US 206
112:US 202
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63:Coordinates
489:Categories
462:2008-05-01
407:2008-05-01
351:2008-05-01
318:References
251:Somerville
172:New Jersey
76:74°37′44″W
73:40°34′32″N
308:stop sign
474:See also
103:junction
101:Roads at
46:Location
261:History
164:Raritan
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
