Editing New Jersey Route 13 (section)

==== Added pressure (1965&ndash;1966) ====
[[File:NJ 13 Lovelandtown Bridge (1).jpg|right|thumb|Heading westbound onto the Lovelandtown Bridge, which is most of Route&nbsp;13's alignment]]
More complaints came from higher officials in September&nbsp;1965, when a resident of [[Fair Lawn, New Jersey|Fair Lawn]] drove off the temporary Lovelandtown Bridge and died. The car crashed through the wooden railings of the bridge and landed in the canal below. The driver's death sparked the attention of [[New Jersey Senate|State Senator]] [[Wayne Dumont]] and Point Pleasant Mayor Walter B. Brown; they deemed the bridge a traffic hazard and pressured [[Governor of New Jersey|Governor]] [[Richard J. Hughes]] to speed up construction. Dumont also claimed that the previous governor's administration provided money for the new bridge.<ref>{{cite news |title=Dumont Flays Hughes After Highway Death |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46578896/lovelandtown-bridge-september-8-1965/ |access-date=March 12, 2020 |work=The Paterson Morning Call |date=September 8, 1965 |page=1|via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> However, the State Highway Department claimed that no money was ever allocated for such use.<ref>{{cite news |title=Says Road Death May Have Been Prevented |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46579217/lovelandtown-bridge-september-9-1965/ |access-date=March 12, 2020 |work=The Red Bank Daily Register |date=September 9, 1965 |page=22|via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

In December&nbsp;1965, the borough of Point Pleasant noted that meetings between them, Ocean County and the State Highway Department would be conducted on December&nbsp;9 or December&nbsp;16, to discuss a new Lovelandtown Bridge. Chief Beecroft, who previously wanted a tunnel crossing, noted buses were taken off the temporary structure for safety.<ref>{{cite news |title=Borough Sets 2 Dates for Bridge Talks |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46687357/lovelandtown-bridge-december-1-1965/ |access-date=March 14, 2020 |work=The Asbury Park Evening Press |date=December 1, 1965 |page=20|via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> By December&nbsp;3, Point Pleasant announced that the meeting would take place on December&nbsp;16.<ref>{{cite news |title=Point Pleasant Seeks Parley About Bridge |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46687389/lovelandtown-bridge-december-4-1965/ |access-date=March 14, 2020 |work=The Asbury Park Evening Press |date=December 4, 1965 |page=8|via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

In January&nbsp;1966, the [[New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection|New Jersey State Conservation Department]] approved the plans of the State Highway Department for the construction of a new Lovelandtown Bridge. This new bridge would need a {{convert|60|ft|m}} horizontal clearance and a vertical clearance of {{convert|65|ft|m}} to help navigation through the canal. Bridge Avenue would be moved north for the new bridge, with the construction of a new alignment. This would help eliminate curves that were considered dangerous to the old bridge. However, the bridge was still subject to the approval of a United States Engineer in [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Canal Bridge Approval Set |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46687767/lovelandtown-bridge-january-14-1966/ |access-date=March 14, 2020 |work=The Long Branch Daily Record |date=January 14, 1966 |page=4|via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> These plans reached the United States Army Corps of Engineers in April&nbsp;1966, when they announced openings for anyone who had opposition to the project.<ref>{{cite news |title=Army Weighs Bridge Route Plans |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46688054/lovelandtown-april-21-1966/ |access-date=March 14, 2020 |work=The Asbury Park Evening Press |date=April 21, 1966 |page=13|via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> By the deadline of May&nbsp;16, no objections were filed with the engineers on the new bridge.<ref>{{cite news |title=New Objections Received to Bridge Plan |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46688381/lovelandtown-may-17-1966/ |access-date=March 14, 2020 |work=The Asbury Park Evening Press |date=May 17, 1966 |page=13|via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

In July&nbsp;1966, the state announced that they were ready to begin construction of a new Lovelandtown Bridge, but they would have to wait until the Army Corps of Engineers announced their full approval of the project. The state felt that a new bridge would not be finished until 1968, but would at least get approval within a span of four to six weeks. However, the bridge alignment changed in April to have an {{convert|80|ft|m}} vertical clearance due to new regulations for future expansion of the canal.<ref>{{cite news |title=Story of Bridge Nearing Climax |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/46688521/lovelandtown-bridge-july-25-1966/ |access-date=March 14, 2020 |work=The Asbury Park Evening Press |date=July 25, 1966 |page=17|via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>