Editing New Jersey Route 37 (section)

==Route description==
[[File:Lakehurst Circle.jpg|thumb|left|Route 37 at its western terminus at Route 70 at the Lakehurst Circle]]
Route 37 begins at the Lakehurst Circle with [[New Jersey Route 70|Route 70]] in [[Lakehurst, New Jersey|Lakehurst]], heading east first briefly as an undivided two-lane road, then becoming a four&ndash;lane [[Dual carriageway|divided highway]]. Soon after beginning, the route crosses into [[Manchester Township, New Jersey|Manchester]].<ref name="njsld" /> It intersects with Commonwealth Boulevard, which provides access to the [[Leisure Village West-Pine Lake Park, New Jersey|Leisure Village West-Pine Lake Park]] community, before crossing into [[Toms River, New Jersey|Toms River]].<ref name="njsld" /><ref name=gm>{{google maps |url=https://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Rte+37+%26+Rte+70,+Lakehurst,+Ocean,+New+Jersey+08733&daddr=route+35+and+route+37+seaside+heights,+nj&geocode=&hl=en&mra=pe&mrcr=0&sll=39.981782,-74.188972&sspn=0.247286,0.439453&ie=UTF8&ll=39.976068,-74.188614&spn=0.247307,0.439453&t=h&z=11 |title=overview of New Jersey Route 37 |access-date=2009-04-01}}</ref> Route 37 continues east with many intersections that feature [[jughandle]]s and at the intersection with Industrial Way, the road widens to six lanes.<ref name="njsld" /> Route 37 passes to the north of [[Holiday City - Silver Ridge Park]], an age-restricted community which contributes to the large population of senior residents in the area.<ref name="njsld" /><ref name=gm/> The route crosses [[Conrail Shared Assets Operations]]' Toms River Industrial Track line before it meets the intersection of Mule Road ([[List of county routes in Ocean County, New Jersey#642-2|CR 642]]) and Oak Ridge Parkway/Lakehurst Road ([[County Route 527 (New Jersey)|CR 527]]). After the intersection of Oak Ridge Parkway/Lakehurst Road (CR 527), the route passes north of [[Community Medical Center (New Jersey)|Community Medical Center]] and crosses over the North Branch of the [[Toms River]].<ref name="njsld" />

	
[[File:2018-09-19 14 25 46 View east along New Jersey State Route 37 just east of Coolidge Avenue in Toms River Township, Ocean County, New Jersey.jpg|thumb|right|Route 37 eastbound past CR 70 in Toms River]]
Route 37 features a [[Cloverleaf interchange|cloverleaf interchange]] with the [[Garden State Parkway]]/[[U.S. Route 9 in New Jersey|US 9]]. Past the Garden State Parkway, the route crosses the former alignment of US 9, [[New Jersey Route 166|Route 166]].<ref name="njsld" /> Past this intersection, Route 37 becomes a road lined with several businesses.<ref name=gm />  The route intersects with Hooper Avenue ([[County Route 549 (New Jersey)|CR 549]]) and Clifton Avenue ([[List of county routes in Ocean County, New Jersey#38|CR 38]]). Vaughn Avenue/West End Avenue ([[List of county routes in Ocean County, New Jersey#627|CR 627]]) intersects next and Route 37 runs along the border between Toms River to the north and [[Island Heights, New Jersey|Island Heights]] to the south.<ref name="njsld" /> Route 37 meets the intersection of Central Avenue (CR 627) and fully enters Toms River again at the intersection of Gilford Avenue. Further east, the route intersects with Fischer Boulevard ([[County Route 549 (New Jersey)#CR 549 Spur|CR 549 Spur]]/[[County Route 571 (New Jersey)|CR 571]]).<ref name="njsld" />

Route 37 crosses the [[Barnegat Bay]] on the [[Thomas A. Mathis and J. Stanley Tunney Bridges]] with the eastbound bridge featuring a [[Moveable bridge|drawbridge]] that allows ships to pass through while the westbound bridge is a higher-level span.<ref name="njsld" /><ref name=gm/>  The route continues onto [[Pelican Island (New Jersey)|Pelican Island]] in the Barnegat Bay, crossing into a small piece of [[Berkeley Township, New Jersey|Berkeley Township]]. Route 37 crosses over a part of the Barnegat Bay and heads onto the [[Barnegat Peninsula]], where the route comes to its eastern terminus at an interchange with [[New Jersey Route 35|Route 35]] on the border of Berkeley Township and [[Seaside Heights, New Jersey|Seaside Heights]]. At this interchange, access to Seaside Heights is provided by a ramp from northbound Route 35 a short distance past the ramp from eastbound Route 37, connecting to Sumner Avenue, while access from Seaside Heights to westbound Route 37 is provided by a direct ramp from Hamilton Avenue.<ref name="njsld" />

Due to the area's vacationers, many of which come from [[New York (state)|New York]] and [[North Jersey|Northern New Jersey]], Route 37 is routinely congested with seasonal traffic in the summer, especially on and around the Mathis and Tunney Bridges and at the interchange with the Garden State Parkway as heavy tourist traffic converges on the shore.<ref name=nyt>{{cite news |last=James|first=George|access-date=2008-10-22|title=Reaching the Beach on the Parkway Can Take a Toll|newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=May 23, 1999 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/05/23/nyregion/reaching-the-beach-on-the-parkway-can-take-a-toll.html}}</ref> Additionally, the road sees congestion due to the area's rapid growth in commercial development.<ref name=trt>{{cite news |last=La Russo|first=Jo Ann|title=Township Master Plan Seeks To Address Traffic, Growth|publisher=Toms River Times|date=August 19, 2006}}</ref>