Following a deadly crash at a Lavallette restaurant over the weekend, Ocean County State Senator Jim Holzapfel announced Tuesday that he plans to introduce legislation requiring additional safety protections for outdoor dining areas located directly alongside active roadways.
Holzapfel, who represents New Jersey’s 10th Legislative District, which includes portions of Ocean and Monmouth counties, said the proposed legislation would require restaurants with roadside outdoor dining to install protective bollards or other approved barriers designed to shield customers from vehicles.
“Outdoor dining is a great part of what makes our shore communities special, but we have to make sure it’s safe,” Holzapfel said, adding that dining areas immediately adjacent to active roads should have basic protective barriers separating customers from traffic.
The proposal comes days after Lakewood Alerts reported on the deadly crash in Lavallette, where a 93-year-old driver crashed into the outdoor dining area of Meg’s Grill on Route 35 North on Saturday morning.
Police said the driver was attempting to park when she apparently pressed the accelerator instead of the brake, sending the vehicle through the outdoor dining area and into the restaurant. A 56-year-old Toms River woman was killed and seven other patrons were injured.
Holzapfel said the Lavallette tragedy highlights the need for physical protections between traffic and customers seated in roadside dining areas. His office said he intends to formally introduce the legislation in the New Jersey Senate.
Gutter dining needs to be repealed. If your building is limited in size move. The death of this woman, who was under a 2nd Canopy, not the first one Approved is on the owners of Megs and sadly the politicians who allowed it. Safety should be more important than receipts. Revoke gutter dining on Rt 35
The speed limit is to high to safely park in pull in parking. You cannot see an open spaces at 35mph, and 35 mph is to high a speed to enter a parking spot. .Megs was a walk up burger and shake business with 0 seating options. Then she was permitted counter seating, ok I get that, and then COVID came, and you closed businesses and schools, but allowed LIquor stores to stay open, WRONG MOVE MURPHY, And gutter dining was born. COVID is over, and gutter dining was never repealed and a woman is dead because the owner wanted money. You refused to drop the speed limit to 25, the congestion is so bad at the shore no one is safe. Also, The sidewalks are not the property of the businesses profiting from their dangerouse expansions either. You made a law with a 15ft set back then you rolled it back to 10 and the set back at Megs was 4ft at the time of the accident, and a woman had died. I saw the lawmakers and the owner caused her death. The lawmakers are untouchable, so Megs and the driver will have to be held responsible. BTW I am Reg Republican.
Revoke all gutter dining, or cone off parking spots that are in front of them and for heavens sake reduce the speed limit to 25mph!!