Construction on the Route 36 Highlands Bridge, which connects Sea Bright and Highlands over the Shrewsbury River, will be delayed until after the July Fourth weekend, according to the N.J. Department of Transportation (DOT).

The demolition of the southbound approach spans of the existing bridge was originally scheduled to begin June 23.

DOT spokeswoman Erin Phalon said this week the delay was due to concerns about traffic during the busy July Fourth holiday weekend.

"Delaying the traffic shift will provide for better traffic flow during the holiday weekend and will enable DOT to install additional electronic equipment like variable messaging signs and other electronic equipment that will help us monitor traffic and help us provide information to motorists," said Phalon.

District 11 state Sen. Sean T. Kean had previously called for the DOT to postpone the construction of the bridge until the close of the summer tourism season.

"The commissioner recognizes that allowing this project to move forward during the busiest time of the year is unfair to the businesses, residents and tourists in the area," said Kean in a June 16 press release.

"Postponing the demolition is a positive step that ensures we can enjoy our July Fourth weekend without the massive traffic delays caused by lane closures on the bridge."

On July 7, DOT will close the inside lane of Route 36 in each direction, according to a press release.

During the closure, a barrier curb and fencing will be installed along the median. One lane of traffic will be maintained in each direction.

Beginning July 14, Route 36 southbound traffic will shift to the northbound side of the bridge in order to begin the demolition of the southbound approach spans of the existing bridge, according to the release.

The traffic shifts are part of the $124.5 million Route 36 Highlands Bridge replacement project, according to the June 9 DOT press release.

Kean said previously, construction on the span, which began in February, has already had "a serious impact on the citizens who travel the bridge as well as local business."

"Last weekend we saw traffic delayed for hours as motorists departed from Sandy Hook and the other local beach areas," said Kean in a previous press release. "We should delay construction until after Labor Day to mitigate the hardship this construction will have. By starting after the summer, we will only have to endure this situation for one summer season instead of two."

The upcoming traffic shifts on the Route 36 Highlands Bridge also will impact area businesses during their most profitable season, according to local business owner Scott Kelly.

"It's definitely going to have a huge effect. I know when they do it during the week, it affects the flow of traffic and that affects people coming in here," said Kelly, who owns Mad Hatter Pub & Eatery in Sea Bright, of the lane closures.

Kelly, along with Brian George of Northshore Menswear, is a co-president of the newly formed Sea Bright Business Alliance, which is made up members of the Sea Bright business community.

He added, "Not only do you have the traffic coming from Sandy Hook but the traffic coming into the town will be completely bottlenecked."

Kean also spoke previously about the effects the traffic shift and lane closures would have on the local economy.

"During the summer, thousands of tourists flock to this area making our roadways some of the most congested in the state," said Kean previously. "Embarking on this massive construction project during the height of the summer tourism season will seriously impact on residents and businesses throughout the region."

Kean said in a June 16 press release that representatives from Sea Streak ferries have been in contact with him and the DOT about adding six ferry trips in the morning and six return trips between Sandy Hook and the Conner's Hotel ferry stop in Highlands on the weekends.

He said in the release that he hopes the new plan would help alleviate traffic congestion on the weekends.

"We need to look at all possible ways to mitigate the traffic congestion that will occur when construction begins on this project," he said. "Increased ferry service will give people another way to get to and from Sandy Hook and, hopefully, will help reduce traffic congestion."

The bridge replacement project has been the center of controversy most recently involving the filing of a federal complaint to the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation about the removal of the remnants of a pre- Civil War historic dock allegedly without going through the proper channels.

Various state officials including Kean have also called for a halt to the construction project to replace the 75-year-old drawbridge with a 30-foot higher fixed bridge pending a full investigation into an alleged forgery of documents relating to the bridge by a DOT employee.

James J. Duffy, a 22-year employee of the DOT, was arrested April 1 and charged with falsifying or tampering with records, a fourth-degree crime, in connection with an agreement of sale for property transfers for the Highlands Bridge construction project.

Duffy was charged after an investigation revealed that on July 12, 2006, he allegedly twice forged the signature of the Highlands borough clerk on documents identified as agreements of sale for the transfer of parcels 122 and 123 to the state of New Jersey, according to a press release from the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office.

Construction to replace the bridge began in February with the beginning of work on a new fixed-span bridge adjacent to the existing bridge, according to the DOT.

Attorneys for the borough of Sea Bright and the grassroots group Citizens for Rational Coastal Development (CRCD) filed an injunction in December to stop the DOT from going forward with the bridge replacement, but a federal judge denied the request Feb. 4 in U.S. District Court based on the DOT's representation that the bridge would remain untouched until May 2009, according to counsel for the CRCD Stuart Lieberman, of Lieberman & Blecher.

The CRCD has since dropped out of the federal suit but has filed another request for an injunction, this time in the state court AppellateDivision and a similar request in state Superior Court, Monmouth County.

The injunctive request in the Appellate Division of the Superior Court was recently denied, according to Lieberman.

Lieberman and the CRCD were recently back in court for a hearing on a complaint filed against the borough of Highlands.

The complaint involved the borough's alleged violation of the Open Public Meetings Act for convening a meeting to hold the first reading of an ordinance on the conveyance of block 8, lots 2 and 2.01 to the DOT for block 40, lot 11.

Another part of the complaint is the alleged illegal land transfer of block 39, lots 17 and 17.01 to the DOT, which the complaint states was transferred without a municipal resolution, ordinance, Green Acres review or State House Commission approval.

Block 39, lots 17 and 17.01 is known as the Lighthouse Dock and block 8, lots 2 and 2.01 is known as South Bay Avenue Park.

One lane of traffic in each direction will be maintained on the northbound side of the bridge, and the northbound sidewalk will remain open to pedestrians, according to the DOT press release.

This traffic pattern will remain in place while the south half of the new structure is constructed, according to the DOT release.

Upon completion of the new structure in summer 2009, traffic will shift to the new structure and the existing structure will be demolished, the DOT said.

The traffic patterns changes demonstrate progress in the state-funded replacement of the Route 36 Highlands Bridge, according to the release.

"The existing bridge, which was built in 1932, has reached the end of its useful life," the DOT release stated. "The existing Route 36 Highlands Bridge has been rated the worst movable bridge in New Jersey."

It continues, "This bridge is part of the emergency evacuation route for Sea Bright Borough and the Gateway National Recreation Area. The new bridge was designed to serve motorists for 100 years."

The DOT has staged the project in a manner that will enable motorists to cross the Shrewsbury River throughout construction, according to the agency.

Route 36 will remain open to traffic for the duration of the project. No detours are scheduled for mainline Route 36. The project is scheduled to be completed in December 2010, according to the DOT.

Variable message signs will inform motorists of changes in traffic operations during construction, according to the release.

Equipment has been installed to measure traffic speed and advise the public during construction. State and local police will be utilized for work-zone safety during construction operations, as well.

Construction information and real-time traffic updates are available at www.NJ511.info and www.njcommuter.com.