An Atlantic City judge has rejected a lawsuit from Atlantic City casinos and the AtlantiCare medical facility that sought an injunction to halt work on Atlantic Avenue, a block from the city’s casinos and Boardwalk.
The lawsuit said the so-called $24 million “road diet” project, which ultimately will decrease the number of traffic lanes from four to two on Atlantic Avenue, would cause disruption to the casinos and hospital. Atlantic County Superior Court Judge Michael J. Blee disagreed, denying the injunction on December 22 and ruling on January 26 that there is no evidence that Phase 1 of the project caused any disruption, and that Phase 2 can proceed.
The project aims to make Atlantic Avenue safer for pedestrians, add bike lanes, and synchronize traffic lights for better traffic flow. Phase 22 will involve conduit installation, paving, striping and traffic light synchronization.
The work has been a pet project of Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr., who issued a statement after the decision:
“Some very power people have been trying to stop this project since its inception, but the Small administration has been standing up to all of them.
“People keep wanting to make this about traffic flow, but this project is being done in the name of safety for the residents and visitors of the great City of Atlantic City, not to mention the taxpayers don’t have to spend a dime to get their streets paved and traffic lights synchronized. Atlantic Avenue is one of the most dangerous streets in the state, and we are making every effort to fix that. I’m happy to say striping will continue along Atlantic Avenue as we enter the new year, so we can ensure cleaner and safer streets in Atlantic City in 2024.”
Mark Giannantonio, president and CEO of Resorts Atlantic City and president of the Casino Association of New Jersey, said that safety is the industry’s main concern with the project.
“The Atlantic City Boardwalk casino properties and AtlantiCare are disappointed in today’s ruling to grant temporary relief,” Giannantonio said in an email to PlayNJ.com. “We stand firm in our belief that this change in traffic patterns on Atlantic Avenue could have very real public health, safety and general welfare implications.”
Many in the city have sought the eventual conversion of Atlantic Avenue and Pacific Avenue, the street fronting the casinos, Boardwalk and ocean, into one-way streets to improve traffic flow to and from the casinos. There was no indication that is the goal of the Atlantic Avenue work.
