TOMS RIVER – There’s a brand new sign on the side of a former DMV inspection station, but authorities warned people not to take it as a sign that the facility is re-opening.
For years, locals drove to the inspection station on James Street on the corner of Route 9. Long-time residents will remember parking along James, waiting their turn. It didn’t have nearly as many bays as the current one on Route 70 in Lakewood, so sometimes you’d have to turn your car off while waiting.
It closed some time ago. These days, the only cars parked on the road are most likely from the nearby Jamestowne Village apartments. But new signage on the old building turned some heads recently, making people wonder if there would be inspections here again. On one hand, people wouldn’t have to drive up to the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission inspection station on Route 70 to get their vehicles inspected. But on the other hand, the roads between Hooper Avenue and Route 9 are already pretty busy with traffic, and this would add another high-impact site.
“MVC maintains a facility on James Street in Toms River for the storage of furnishings and other materials used for MVC operations across New Jersey,” DMV spokesman William Connolly.
“We recently posted new MVC signage at the facility, but the signs do not refer to the facility as an inspection station,” he said. “This facility is not scheduled to reopen as an inspection station or for any customer-related business at this time.”
There are two inspection stations in Ocean County:
- 1145 Route 70 in Lakewood
- 220 Recovery Road, Manahawkin (this is on a relatively new road near Route 72 and the Garden State Parkway)
The full list can be found at state.nj.us/mvc/locations/inspection.htm. There are more than 1,500 private inspection facilities. A list of them can be found at data.nj.gov/Transportation/Vehicle-Inspection-Facility-Locations-Map/a7mk-8suc
