LAKE HOPATCONG, NJ (Morris County) – A project to install boating navigation lights on two Lake Hopatcong bridges in Jefferson, approved by the Morris County Freeholders in May, has delayed about two weeks. Work is expected to commence shortly after the Fourth of July holiday.
The Freeholders awarded a bid contract for $136,545 to Fai-Gon Electric Inc. of Piscataway to install safety lights on county bridges over Espanong Road and Brady Road in Jefferson.
Project design was done by Boswell Engineering.
There are no existing lights on the two bridges, which cross over busy navigable waters, to alert boaters to the oncoming structures. Currently, the county employs reflectorized signs attached to the bridge.
The state Department of Transportation, in a review of bridges, advised the county to upgrade the reflectors with full lighting to meet U.S. Coast Guard regulations. These are the only two bridges in the county requiring such lighting.
The lighting should not impede the flow of boat traffic at either bridge. There might some slight motoring delays on the bridges during work on top of the decks when work starts in early July. The original anticipated start date was June 26.
