Editing Middletown Township, New Jersey (section)

==Infrastructure==
===Emergency services===
Middletown has some of the largest emergency service departments in the area. The police and fire departments celebrated a joint 75th Anniversary in 2003.<ref>Van Develde, Elaine. {{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20130124042222/http://ind.gmnews.com/news/2003-06-18/Front_page/017.html "Police and fire celebrate 75th anniversary"]}}, ''Independent'', June 18, 2003. Accessed August 7, 2012. "Middletown's police and fire departments both celebrated 75 years on the beat Saturday. While the beat was as expansive then as it is now, neither department was anywhere near their present size. Three-quarters of a century later, the township's fire department is boasted as the largest all-volunteer department in the world. The police department is one of the largest in the state."</ref> As of November 2016, Middletown Township switched their radio system over to county dispatch as part of an effort to save an estimated $1&nbsp;million per year by eliminating 15 dispatchers.<ref>Zimmer, Russ. [http://www.app.com/story/news/local/public-safety/2016/04/04/middletown-nj-police-fire-dispatch/82620004/ "Middletown to lay off dispatchers, join county's 911 center"], ''[[Asbury Park Press]]'', April 5, 2016. Accessed December 4, 2016. "Middletown is shifting its emergency dispatch operations to the Monmouth County Sheriff's Office in Freehold Township, eliminating 15 township jobs, although those workers will have an opportunity to join on with the county. The switch could save the town as much as $1 million annually beginning in 2017, according to Township Administrator Anthony Mercantante."</ref>

====Police====
The Middletown Township Police Department is the largest police force in Monmouth County, with 112 sworn officers.<ref>[https://www.middletownnj.org/713/Police-Department Police Department], Middletown Township. Accessed January 30, 2025.</ref> The department was formed on May 15, 1928, with the hiring of its first full-time police officer, Earl N. Hoyer. His appointment read Patrolman / Chief of Police, at an annual salary of $125.00.<ref>Finck, Adam. [https://www.middletownnj.org/283/Police-History Police Department History], Middletown Township. Accessed January 30, 2025.</ref>

The Rude Awakening Program educates the youth and their parents about alcohol abuse and its position as a gateway drug to further and harsher drugs and substance abuse. The program is specifically designed to educate the student in the life altering ramifications of drinking and driving.<ref>[http://middletownnj.org/Police/rudeAwakening.asp Middletown Township – Police Department Rude Awakening Program] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101103151051/http://middletownnj.org/Police/rudeAwakening.asp |date=November 3, 2010 }}</ref> The program is mainly backed by the police department and has later encompassed EMS and fire into the program for vehicle extrication demonstrations.

====Fire department====
The Middletown Township Fire Department (referred to as MTFD, Monmouth County agency prefix 31 and 71) consists of 11 fire companies plus additional specialized units spread throughout the town. The department has 500 volunteers.<ref>[https://www.middletownnj.org/264/Fire-Department Fire Department], Middletown Township. Accessed February 27, 2020.</ref> It is commonly stated that the Middletown Township Fire Department is "the world's largest all volunteer fire department".<ref>Davison, Andrew. {{usurped|1=[https://archive.today/20130124054543/http://ind.gmnews.com/news/2010-07-22/Front_Page/Mayor_Volunteers_earn_Midtwn_top_cities_ranking.html "Mayor: Volunteers earn Mid'twn top cities ranking Twp. one of only four N.J. towns to make Money magazine list"]}}, ''Middletown Independent'', July 22, 2010. Accessed March 12, 2012. "Scharfenberger said the Middletown Township Fire Department (MTFD), which is composed entirely of volunteers, caught Money magazine's attention. 'They were really impressed with the fire department, not only the largeness of it but the effectiveness of it.' Scharfenberger said the MTFD is considered the largest all-volunteer fire department in the world."</ref><ref>[[Gail Sheehy|Sheehy, Gail]]. [https://books.google.com/books?id=DCC7wHBftPUC&pg=PT54 ''Middletown, America: One Town's Passage from Trauma to Hope''], p. 54. [[Random House]], 2003. {{ISBN|9781588363190}}. Accessed October 30, 2019. "And with the exception of one, all have their own fire company, which allows Middletown to boast of the largest all-volunteer fire department in the world."</ref>

Fire companies, in order of creation, are as follows:

* Navesink Hook and Ladder Fire Company No. 1 on May 1, 1886<ref>[http://www.navesinkfire.org/ Home page], Navesink Hook and Ladder Fire Company. Accessed June 29, 2012.</ref><ref>Davison, Andrew. [http://ind.gmnews.com/news/2011-06-30/Front_Page/Navesink_Hook__Ladder_celebrates_125_years.html "Navesink Hook & Ladder celebrates 125 years; Legacy of volunteers connects generations"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150915003200/http://ind.gmnews.com/news/2011-06-30/Front_Page/Navesink_Hook__Ladder_celebrates_125_years.html |date=September 15, 2015 }}, ''Independent'', June 30, 2011. Accessed June 29, 2012.</ref>
* Brevent Park & Leonardo Fire Company on October 16, 1903
* Belford Chemical Engine Company No. 1 on August 14, 1916<ref>[http://www.belfordengine.com/id1.html History], Belford Engine Company. Accessed June 29, 2012.</ref>
* Community Fire Company of Leonardo on September 9, 1922<ref>[http://www.cfcstation4.org/History.htm A Brief History – 1922–present] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120117205201/http://www.cfcstation4.org/History.htm |date=January 17, 2012 }}, Community Fire Company. Accessed June 29, 2012.</ref>
* East Keansburg Fire Company No. 1 in 1922
* Port Monmouth Fire Company No. 1 in November 1922
* Belford Independent Fire Company in 1923
* Middletown Fire Company No. 1 in April 1924
* River Plaza Hose Company No. 1 on December 8, 1927

These companies acted separately, until August 28, 1928, when all the individual companies were brought together to form the current fire department. Since then, two more companies have been formed:

* Lincroft Fire Company in May 1932
* Old Village Fire Company on September 7, 1955

Later, the individual companies took on station numbers with regard to their creation date, with Navesink becoming Station #1 and Old Village becoming Station #11.

=====Specialized units=====
There are other special units besides the main fire companies. The MTFD has its own Fire Police Unit, Air Unit, and Special Services Unit (SSU).
* MTFD Fire Police controls fire scenes and ensures that civilians are kept away
* The Air Unit provides service for firefighter SCBA equipment and also has a mobile air compressor truck to refill air bottles at the scene of a fire. This truck responds outside of Middletown to neighboring towns as requested.
* MTFD Special Services Emergency Response Team provides Level A hazardous material emergency response, technical and mass decontamination, structural collapse rescue, emergency shoring, high & low angle rope rescue, confined space rescue, trench rescue and various other [[technical rescue]] capabilities to Township of Middletown as well as neighboring towns as requested or under contract by certain towns.
* The Brevent Park and Leonardo Fire Company is the owner of a marine fireboat that can be requested throughout the Bayshore community for scenes on the water involving fire and water rescue.

====EMS====
There are five squads that make up the Township of Middletown EMS Department (EMS) and provide Basic Life Support (BLS) ambulances to the township. They are:
* [[Middletown First Aid and Rescue Squad]]
* Fairview First Aid Squad
* Port Monmouth First Aid Squad
* Leonardo First Aid and Rescue Squad 
* Lincroft First Aid and Rescue Squad
They are all volunteer as well.<ref>[http://www.middletownems.org/ Township of Middletown Emergency Medical Services]</ref> All except Port Monmouth have EMS rescue trucks with equipment to handle vehicle extrications and rope rescue. These squads also have boats and dive teams to perform rescue and recovery operations involving water which have been called out of town to assist with large area searches. Port Monmouth provides a bariatric unit, a converted ambulance, for severely overweight patients. It has been requested outside of Middletown Township as a back-up for the unit from the [[Monmouth Ocean Hospital Service Corporation]](MONOC).

Advanced Life Support or paramedics for the township and surrounding towns are provided by MONOC. The two primary paramedic units for Middletown Township are Medic 206 located at MTFD Station 8 (Middletown Fire Company No. 1) covering a majority of the town and Medic 201 located at South Aberdeen First Aid Squad in [[Aberdeen Township, New Jersey|Aberdeen]] covering the Northwestern end of town. Other medic units from farther distances are dispatched when these are not available.

===Transportation===
====Roads and highways====
[[File:2021-05-27 16 47 32 View south along the northbound lanes of New Jersey State Route 444 (Garden State Parkway) from the overpass for Monmouth County Route 52 (Red Hill Road) in Middletown Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The [[Garden State Parkway]] in Middletown]]

{{As of|2010|5}}, the township had a total of {{convert|350.16|mi}} of roadways, of which {{convert|302.18|mi}} were maintained by the municipality, {{convert|31.44|mi}} by Monmouth County and {{convert|11.95|mi}} by the [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]] and {{convert|4.59|mi}} by the [[New Jersey Turnpike Authority]].<ref>[http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/mileage_Monmouth.pdf Monmouth County Mileage by Municipality and Jurisdiction], [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]], May 2010. Accessed July 18, 2014.</ref>

The [[Garden State Parkway]] is the largest and busiest highway which passes through the township, connecting [[Tinton Falls, New Jersey|Tinton Falls]] in the south to [[Holmdel Township, New Jersey|Holmdel Township]] in the north.<ref>[http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/00000444__-.pdf#page=38 Garden State Parkway Straight Line Diagram], [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]], January 1997. Accessed October 2, 2014.</ref> The township includes Parkway interchange 109 which is signed for [[County Route 520 (New Jersey)|County Route 520]] to [[Red Bank, New Jersey|Red Bank]] / [[Lincroft, New Jersey|Lincroft]] and interchange 114 for Holmdel / Middletown.<ref>[http://www.state.nj.us/turnpike/our-roadways.html Travel Resources: Interchanges, Service Areas & Commuter Lots], [[New Jersey Turnpike Authority]]. Accessed October 2, 2014.</ref> There are three toll gates on the Parkway located in Middletown, two of them are at Exit 109 (northbound entry, southbound exit), and two at Exit 114 (northbound entry, with the southbound toll exit in Holmdel). [[New Jersey Route 35|Routes 35]]<ref>[https://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/pdf/00000035__-.pdf#page=12 Route 35 Straight Line Diagram], [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]], updated March 2016. Accessed November 17, 2022.</ref> and [[New Jersey Route 36|36]]<ref>[https://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/pdf/00000036__-.pdf#page=5 Route 36 Straight Line Diagram], [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]], updated May 2018. Accessed November 17, 2022.</ref> pass through Middletown.

[[County Route 516 (New Jersey)|CR 516]] travels through the northern part of the township and its eastern end is at [[New Jersey Route 36|Route 36]] near [[Leonardo, New Jersey|Leonardo]], while its western end is at [[New Jersey Route 18|Route 18]] in [[Old Bridge Township, New Jersey|Old Bridge]].<ref>[https://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/pdf/00000516__-.pdf#page=6 County Route 516 Straight Line Diagram], [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]], updated November 2012. Accessed November 17, 2022.</ref> [[County Route 520 (New Jersey)|CR 520]] passes through the southern portion of Middletown, and leads to [[Sea Bright, New Jersey|Sea Bright]] to the east, and turns into [[County Route 612 (Middlesex County, New Jersey)|CR 612]] in [[Monroe Township, Middlesex County, New Jersey|Monroe Township]] to the west, making it a vital route for [[Central Jersey|central New Jersey]], by connecting sections of the state near the [[Jersey Shore|shore]] to inland sections of the state near the [[New Jersey Turnpike]] at Exit 8A.<ref>[https://www.state.nj.us/transportation/refdata/sldiag/pdf/00000520__-.pdf#page=5 County Route 520 Straight Line Diagram], [[New Jersey Department of Transportation]], updated November 2012. Accessed November 17, 2022.</ref><ref>[https://www.co.monmouth.nj.us/Documents/24/MC%20Road%20Plan%20Map%20Oct%2015%202012.pdf Monmouth County Road Plan], [[Monmouth County, New Jersey]], adopted October 15, 2012. Accessed November 17, 2022.</ref>

====Public transportation====
[[File:New Jersey Transit ALP-46 4626 leads Train 3270 into Middletown Station.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Train approaching [[Middletown station (NJ Transit)|Middletown station]]]]

[[NJ Transit]] provides rail service at the [[Middletown station (NJT)|Middletown station]].<ref>[https://www.njtransit.com/station/middletown-station Middletown station], [[NJ Transit]]. Accessed May 1, 2023.</ref> Commuter service runs between New York City's [[Pennsylvania Station (New York City)|Pennsylvania Station]] and [[Bay Head station|Bay Head]] on the [[North Jersey Coast Line]].<ref>[https://www.visitmonmouth.com/Page.aspx?Id=5128 Transportation Map - Rail Service], [[Monmouth County, New Jersey]]. Accessed May 1, 2022.</ref><ref>[https://content.njtransit.com/sites/default/files/pdfs/rail/2023/04/230004/njcl.pdf North Jersey Coast Line schedule], [[NJ Transit]], updated April 23, 2023. Accessed May 1, 2023.</ref>

NJ Transit offers local bus service on the [[817 (New Jersey bus)|817]], [[833 (New Jersey bus)|833]] and [[834 (New Jersey bus)|834]] routes.<ref>[https://www.visitmonmouth.com/Page.aspx?Id=2906 Bus Routes], [[Monmouth County, New Jersey]]. Accessed May 1, 2023.</ref>

[[File:SeaStreak 34th Street.jpg|thumb|250px|right|''[[SeaStreak|SeaStreak Wall Street]]'' docked at the [[East 34th Street Ferry Landing]]]]

Ferry service to and from New York City is available through the [[NY Waterway]]. The ferry slip is located in the neighborhood of [[Belford, New Jersey|Belford]] and is utilized by many Middletown residents for commuting to New York City. The roughly 50 minute trip on the ferry to [[West Midtown Ferry Terminal]] travels across the [[Lower New York Bay]] to enter Lower New York Harbor at [[The Narrows]].<ref>[http://www.nywaterway.com/BelfordHarborWayTerminal.aspx Belford / Harbor Way], [[NY Waterway]]. Accessed July 21, 2016.</ref>

[[SeaStreak]] is another local ferry service, with its ferry slip in neighboring [[Highlands, New Jersey|Highlands]]. SeaStreak offers ferry service to and from New York City with trips to [[Pier 11/Wall Street|Pier 11]] (on the [[East River]] at [[Wall Street]]) and East [[35th Street (Manhattan)|35th Street]] in Manhattan.<ref>Caldwell, Dave. [https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/24/realestate/24livi.html "A Clam Town, Coming Out of Its Shell – Living In Highlands, N.J."], ''[[The New York Times]]'', August 24, 2008. Accessed July 27, 2021. "Three SeaStreak (seastreak.com) ferries depart on weekday mornings from the Conner's Ferry Landing. The trip to Pier 11 in Manhattan, near Wall Street, takes 40 minutes."</ref> The ferry service also offers seasonal travel, such as to the public beaches on [[Sandy Hook, New Jersey|Sandy Hook]], baseball games at [[Yankee Stadium]] and [[Citi Field]], trips to [[Broadway theatre|Broadway]] matinees, [[Martha's Vineyard]] in [[Massachusetts]], college football games at [[United States Military Academy|West Point]], [[Autumn leaf color|fall foliage]] in the [[Hudson Valley]], and to the [[Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade]], among other excursions.<ref>[https://seastreak.com/ferry-routes-and-schedules/ Routes, Schedules and Fares], [[SeaStreak]]. Accessed January 22, 2025.</ref>

===Healthcare===
[[Hackensack Meridian Health]] has two hospitals in the area. [[Bayshore Medical Center]] in neighboring [[Holmdel Township, New Jersey|Holmdel]] and [[Riverview Medical Center]] in neighboring [[Red Bank, New Jersey|Red Bank]].<ref>[https://www.hackensackmeridianhealth.org/locations/#AcademicMedicalCenters Locations], [[Hackensack Meridian Health]]. Accessed January 22, 2025.</ref> These are local hospitals for the [[Raritan Bayshore]] region and handles all but trauma cases. The closest major university hospitals to the area that handle trauma care are, [[Jersey Shore University Medical Center]] in nearby [[Neptune Township, New Jersey|Neptune Township]] and [[Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital]] in nearby [[New Brunswick, New Jersey|New Brunswick]].<ref>Stainton, Lilo H. [https://www.njspotlight.com/2016/06/16-06-19-list-new-jersey-s-10-trauma-centers-always-ready-when-needed/ "List: New Jersey’s 10 Trauma Centers — Always Ready When Needed"], ''NJ Spotlight News'', June 20, 2016. Accessed January 22, 2025.</ref>

[[Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center]], founded in [[New York City]] in 1884, has a regional center for [[Monmouth County, New Jersey|Monmouth County]] located in Middletown.<ref>[https://www.mskcc.org/locations Our Locations], [[Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center]]. Accessed January 22, 2025.</ref> The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center of Monmouth is the first center outside of the main center in [[Manhattan]] to offer outpatient surgery.<ref>[https://www.mskcc.org/locations/directory/msk-monmouth Memorial Sloan Kettering Monmouth], Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center: Monmouth. Accessed January 22, 2025.</ref>