Connie Chung Service Area & Broad St., Bloomfield N.J. Bridge Closure
Dear Essex County,
Please accept this electronic request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form or use a particular software platform to submit my request per NJSA 47:1A-6(f), which states that an email from a requestor including all of the information required on the adopted form shall suffice in place of a completed form as a valid government record request.
I HAVE NOT been convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of New Jersey, any other state, or the United States.
I WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose.
I AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.
Records requested:
Context: As reported by FOX5 NY in August 2025, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority’s Manager of Media Relations and Public Information, Tom Feeney, stated: “The Turnpike Authority did a traffic analysis and discovered that a large number of vehicles were leaving the southbound Parkway and cutting through the service area to exit onto Broad Street to avoid the toll on the Watchung Avenue exit. That was not just a toll revenue issue but also a safety issue. The parking lot and driveway in the service area are not designed to serve as a Parkway exit ramp. The additional traffic put pedestrians at risk.”
Timeframe: January 1, 2023 to present. I believe the timeframe fits into when the Connie Chung rest area was opened for public access to today.
The “traffic analysis” referenced above—any copy received (in whole or in part), including attachments, cover letters, transmittals, or presentations from NJTA or its consultants, and any internal e-mails when it was received or discussed by any authority in Essex County, Bloomfield, or NJTA.
Safety findings considered by NJTA and/or Essex County government officials—any pedestrian-risk reviews, crash/incident analyses, or other safety assessments regarding the Connie Chung/Brookdale Service Area connection to Broad Street or the bridge/access point, created or received by/from NJTA/NJDOT/Essex County or their consultants.
Interagency correspondence—e-mails, letters, meeting notes, agendas, calendar invites, or MOUs between officials/staff of (a) NJTA, (b) NJDOT, and/ or (c) Essex County regarding: the bridge closure or restricted access between the service area and Bloomfield; toll-evasion/cut-through; traffic flow/impacts on Broad Street/Watchung Avenue; or pedestrian safety at the service area driveway.
Governing body materials—Council agendas, minutes, resolutions/ordinances, staff reports, or meeting packets where any of these terms appear: “Connie Chung,” “Brookdale Service Area,” “service area,” “bridge,” “access,” “Broad Street,” or “Watchung Avenue,” etc. that related to the closure/restriction.
Traffic/engineering materials in Bloomfield’s possession relating to the service area/Broad Street/Watchung Ave access: traffic counts (incl. turning-movement counts), queueing or safety analyses, crash summaries, consultant reports or deliverables, and any “traffic analysis” or memorandum discussed with NJTA/NJDOT/ Essex County.
Sincerely,
Marina Davis
My preferred delivery method for response(s) to this request is by E-mail as attachments. Please confirm you have received this request. If you are not the custodian of records, please forward my request to that person and provide their email address to me for future reference.
Yours faithfully,
Marina Davis
Good Afternoon
I’m afraid your request is overbroad. OPRA deals with specific
recognized government documents. It is not a research tool. That is
unless you can identify what specific documents you are looking for, we
won’t be able to help. Ex. With emails we would need to know who they
were being sent to and from whom. We need to know specific documents. We
can not just enter a search term.
Thank you
Regards,
George Seylaz
OPRA Custodian
Office of Essex County Counsel
Hall of Records, Room 535
465 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd
Newark, NJ 07102
(973) 621-5007
From: Marina <[OPRA #81480 email]>
Sent: Monday, September 29, 2025 5:05 PM
To: oprarequests <[Essex County request email]>
Subject: OPRA request - Connie Chung Service Area & Broad St., Bloomfield
N.J. Bridge Closure
You don't often get email from
[1][OPRA #81480 email]. [2]Learn why
this is important
Dear Essex County, Please accept this electronic request for public
records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not
required to fill out an official form or use a particular software
platform to submit my request per NJSA
Dear Essex County,
Please accept this electronic request for public records made under OPRA and the common law right of access. I am not required to fill out an official form or use a particular software platform to submit my request per NJSA 47:1A-6(f), which states that an email from a requestor including all of the information required on the adopted form shall suffice in place of a completed form as a valid government record request.
I HAVE NOT been convicted of any indictable offense under the laws of New Jersey, any other state, or the United States.
I WILL NOT use the requested government records for a commercial purpose.
I AM NOT seeking records in connection with a legal proceeding.
Records requested:
Context: As reported by FOX5 NY in August 2025, the New Jersey Turnpike Authority’s Manager of Media Relations and Public Information, Tom Feeney, stated: “The Turnpike Authority did a traffic analysis and discovered that a large number of vehicles were leaving the southbound Parkway and cutting through the service area to exit onto Broad Street to avoid the toll on the Watchung Avenue exit. That was not just a toll revenue issue but also a safety issue. The parking lot and driveway in the service area are not designed to serve as a Parkway exit ramp. The additional traffic put pedestrians at risk.”
Timeframe: January 1, 2023 to present. I believe the timeframe fits into when the Connie Chung rest area was opened for public access to today.
The “traffic analysis” referenced above—any copy received (in whole or in part), including attachments, cover letters, transmittals, or presentations from NJTA or its consultants, and any internal e-mails when it was received or discussed by any authority in Essex County, Bloomfield, or NJTA.
Safety findings considered by NJTA and/or Essex County government officials—any pedestrian-risk reviews, crash/incident analyses, or other safety assessments regarding the Connie Chung/Brookdale Service Area connection to Broad Street or the bridge/access point, created or received by/from NJTA/NJDOT/Essex County or their consultants.
Interagency correspondence—e-mails, letters, meeting notes, agendas, calendar invites, or MOUs between officials/staff of (a) NJTA, (b) NJDOT, and/ or (c) Essex County regarding: the bridge closure or restricted access between the service area and Bloomfield; toll-evasion/cut-through; traffic flow/impacts on Broad Street/Watchung Avenue; or pedestrian safety at the service area driveway.
Governing body materials—Council agendas, minutes, resolutions/ordinances, staff reports, or meeting packets where any of these terms appear: “Connie Chung,” “Brookdale Service Area,” “service area,” “bridge,” “access,” “Broad Street,” or “Watchung Avenue,” etc. that related to the closure/restriction.
Traffic/engineering materials in Bloomfield’s possession relating to the service area/Broad Street/Watchung Ave access: traffic counts (incl. turning-movement counts), queueing or safety analyses, crash summaries, consultant reports or deliverables, and any “traffic analysis” or memorandum discussed with NJTA/NJDOT/ Essex County.
Sincerely,
Marina Davis
My preferred delivery method for response(s) to this request is by E-mail as attachments. Please confirm you have received this request. If you are not the custodian of records, please forward my request to that person and provide their email address to me for future reference.
Yours faithfully,
Marina Davis
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