Route 36 NJ accidents: where, when and who gets hurt
This page holds police records, not today's news. In 2024 police reported 690 accidents on Route 36 in Monmouth County. Someone was hurt or killed in 180, and 7 of the 8 people killed from 2023 to 2025 were on foot or on a bike.
Hurt in an accident on Route 36, anywhere from Eatontown to Keyport? Answer a few short questions, about 30 seconds, to see if a lawyer's office may review your claim for free.
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Where do most Route 36 accidents happen?
In Eatontown: Grant Avenue had 26 Route 36 accidents with someone hurt or killed in 2024 and 2025, the most of any cross street.
The next three junctions are also in Eatontown: Route 35, Wyckoff Road and Hope Road. Together the four account for 69 of Eatontown's 100 Route 36 injury accidents in those two years.
See the full table
| Rank | Cross street | Town | Hurt or killed | All accidents | People killed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grant Avenue | Eatontown | 26 | 107 | 0 |
| 2 | Route 35 (Neptune Boulevard) | Eatontown | 15 | 46 | 0 |
| 3 (tie) | Wyckoff Road (Route 547) | Eatontown | 14 | 70 | 0 |
| 3 (tie) | Hope Road (County 51) | Eatontown | 14 | 38 | 0 |
| 5 | Route 71 (Monmouth Road) | West Long Branch | 12 | 49 | 1 |
| 6 (tie) | Branchport Avenue | Long Branch | 8 | 31 | 1 |
| 6 (tie) | Main Street | Middletown | 8 | 25 | 0 |
| 6 (tie) | Wilson Avenue | Middletown | 8 | 25 | 0 |
| 6 (tie) | Seventh Avenue | Long Branch | 8 | 22 | 0 |
| 10 (tie) | Middle Road (Route 516) | Hazlet | 6 | 31 | 0 |
| 10 (tie) | Broadway | Middletown | 6 | 25 | 1 |
| 10 (tie) | Poole Avenue | Hazlet | 6 | 25 | 0 |
Grant Avenue had 107 accidents of all kinds, but only about one in four hurt someone. Route 35 crosses here and has its own page on Route 35 car accidents in New Jersey. For a crash on the Parkway itself, see our Garden State Parkway accidents page.
Which towns along Route 36 have the most accidents?
Eatontown, with 191 accidents and 54 with someone hurt in 2024, ahead of Middletown and Hazlet. The road runs through 12 Monmouth County towns, listed here in milepost order.
See the full table
| Town (milepost order) | All accidents 2024 | Hurt or killed 2024 | People hurt 2024 | People killed 2024 | All accidents 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eatontown | 191 | 54 | 68 | 0 | 193 |
| West Long Branch | 62 | 14 | 14 | 2 | 63 |
| Long Branch | 87 | 22 | 28 | 0 | 102 |
| Monmouth Beach | 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 15 |
| Sea Bright | 56 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 47 |
| Highlands | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Atlantic Highlands | 11 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 21 |
| Middletown | 112 | 31 | 38 | 1 | 121 |
| Keansburg | 6 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 1 |
| Union Beach | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
| Hazlet | 108 | 31 | 55 | 1 | 63 |
| Keyport | 39 | 11 | 17 | 0 | 26 |
Hazlet stands out for its size: 31 injury accidents left 55 people hurt in 2024.
Is Route 36 one of New Jersey's most dangerous roads?
Not by volume: Route 36 carried 309 of Monmouth County's 6,952 accidents with someone hurt or killed in 2023 and 2024, about 4 percent.
Its sharper risk is to people outside a car. Seven of the eight people killed from 2023 to 2025 were walking or riding a bike. For the corners with the most injury crashes statewide, see New Jersey's most dangerous intersections, or compare a Monmouth town through Wall Township crash records.
What kind of accidents hurt people on Route 36?
Mostly rear end collisions: 48 percent of Route 36 accidents with someone hurt or killed in 2023 and 2024, against 31 percent across Monmouth County and New Jersey.
Yet not one of those 148 rear end accidents killed anyone. What to do after one is covered in our rear end accident guide for New Jersey.
Timing follows the shore traffic. Of the 309 injury accidents, 145 happened between 3 pm and 9 pm, and 122 fell in May through August, about a third of the year.
Saturday had the most injury accidents of any day (56), and Sunday the fewest (34).2
Who was killed on Route 36, and was it after dark?
Eight people died in eight accidents from 2023 to 2025: five pedestrians, two cyclists and one left turn crash. Seven of the eight deaths came after dark.
| Month | Town | Cross street on the report | Accident type | Light |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2023 | Eatontown | Grant Avenue | Left turn or U turn | Dark, spot street lights |
| August 2023 | Keyport | Atlantic Street | Pedestrian | Dark, continuous street lights |
| March 2024 | West Long Branch | Ramp, recorded as "FR CO 537 EB TO RT 36 SB" | Pedestrian | Dark, continuous street lights |
| October 2024 | Middletown | Broadway | Pedestrian | Dark, spot street lights |
| November 2024 | West Long Branch | Route 71 (Monmouth Road) | Cyclist | Dark, continuous street lights |
| December 2024 | Hazlet | Union Avenue | Pedestrian | Dark, continuous street lights |
| October 2025 | Middletown | Ocean Boulevard (Monmouth County 8) | Cyclist | Daylight |
| October 2025 | Long Branch | Branchport Avenue | Pedestrian | Dark, street lights off |
That is darker than New Jersey as a whole, where 43 percent of fatal accidents in 2023 and 2024 happened in daylight. Six of the seven dark deaths on Route 36 came under street lights.
People on foot or on a bike were in only 40 of Route 36's 1,190 accidents in 2023 and 2024, yet they were 5 of its 6 deaths. Countywide they were 37 of 90 deaths.3
For the claim side, see pedestrian accidents in New Jersey, bicycle accident claims in New Jersey and New Jersey appeals rulings on pedestrians and cyclists hit by cars.
Who has the police report for a Route 36 accident?
Almost always the town police department where the crash happened. Only 2 of the 1,860 Route 36 records from 2023 to 2025 name a State Police station.
- Middletown: the township police page links "Accident Reports" to the CrashDocs online report service.
- Eatontown: the police department is at 47 Broad Street, phone (732) 542-0100. We found no online request form on its page.
- Hazlet, Long Branch, West Long Branch, Keyport, Sea Bright and the smaller boroughs: we have not confirmed an online form for any of them, so call the department's records unit.
- State Police, or no officer came: a State Police report costs $13 on the NJ.gov portal; wait times and the SR-1 self-report are in our New Jersey accident report guide.4
Which road name will the report use?
Often not Route 36. Most Long Branch reports call it Joline Avenue, Sea Bright reports call it Ocean Avenue, and some Middletown reports say Memorial Parkway.
See the full table
| Road name on the report | Where it was used | All accidents | Hurt or killed | People killed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NJ 36, no local name | Eleven towns, mostly Eatontown (282), Hazlet (210) and Middletown (155) | 910 | 255 | 4 |
| Ocean Avenue | Sea Bright (95), Monmouth Beach (5), Highlands (1) | 101 | 17 | 0 |
| Joline Avenue | Long Branch | 74 | 17 | 0 |
| Memorial Parkway | Middletown (40), Atlantic Highlands (9) | 49 | 9 | 1 |
| Monmouth Park Highway | West Long Branch | 35 | 7 | 1 |
| Navesink Avenue | Middletown (12), Highlands (7) | 19 | 4 | 0 |
| Ocean Boulevard | Monmouth Beach, Long Branch | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Use the name on the paper when you search for your report or describe the spot to an insurer. Only about one in six Ocean Avenue accidents in Sea Bright hurt someone, against one in four route-wide.
Once you have it, our guide on how to read a New Jersey crash report explains the codes. Riders can also see Monmouth County motorcycle accident help, and every driver our New Jersey car accident help hub.
Quick answers about Route 36
Was there an accident on Route 36 in New Jersey today?
This page cannot say: it is built from police records through 2025, not live news. If you were in one, the report will come from the town police department, so ask its records unit.
Was there a fatal accident on Route 36 today?
Our death list ends with the two October 2025 deaths in Middletown and Long Branch. For newer fatal crashes, the NJ State Police fatal crash statistics are the official statewide count.
Are accident reports public record in NJ, and what if I miss the 10 days?
Both are answered in our guide to getting a New Jersey accident report, along with how long a report takes and the 10-day reporting rule.
What is the deadliest day to drive on Route 36?
Eight deaths are too few to name one. Injury accidents peaked on Saturday, with 56 in 2023 and 2024, and between 3 pm and 9 pm.
What these numbers can and cannot tell you
The counts on this page are police-reported car accidents from NJDOT crash records, analyzed by us. They show where and when accidents where someone was hurt happened on Route 36. They do not show who was at fault in any accident, and they say nothing about whether you have a claim or what it could be worth.
Rules that apply anywhere in New Jersey
- Your own auto policy's PIP pays eligible medical expenses "no matter who caused the auto accident," up to your policy's limit and after its deductible and co-pay. If you chose your health insurance as primary, it pays first and PIP pays second. A claim against the other driver for pain and suffering is separate: it depends on fault and on the lawsuit option on your policy. 5
- Being partly at fault does not stop you from recovering, as long as your share is not greater than the other driver's, or the combined share of all the drivers you claim against (the "51 percent" rule). Your damages are reduced by your share. 6
- If someone is hurt or killed, or property damage to any one person is over $500, the driver must tell the police right away and send a written report to the Motor Vehicle Commission within 10 days, unless a police officer files one. If police did not investigate, New Jersey's SR-1 self-reporting form is the form for that. 7
- An injury lawsuit generally must be filed within two years, and a claim against a public body (a town, the state, NJ Transit) needs a written notice within 90 days. These are general rules with exceptions; check your own dates with a lawyer. 8
Next steps: how to get your New Jersey accident report, agency by agency, and how New Jersey no-fault (PIP) insurance works after an accident. This is general information, not legal advice.
Hurt in a car accident on Route 36? Take the 30-second New Jersey quiz to see if a lawyer's office may review your claim for free.
Start the New Jersey accident quiz
Advertisement. Opens the New Jersey questionnaire. Review its policies and contact consent before submitting your details. No legal advice or guarantee of acceptance or compensation.
Sources
- NJDOT crash records 2023 to 2025 as normalized by the open-source hudcostreets/nj-crashes project, our analysis, retrieved 10 November 2026.
- NJDOT crash records 2023 and 2024 via hudcostreets/nj-crashes: Route 36, Monmouth County and statewide profiles, our analysis.
- NJDOT crash records 2023 to 2025 via hudcostreets/nj-crashes, fatal accidents supplemented from NJ State Police fatal crash statistics, and statewide fatal accidents by light condition 2023 and 2024, our analysis, retrieved 10 November 2026.
- Middletown Township Police Department; Borough of Eatontown, Police Department; NJSP crash reports on NJ Portal; NJDOT Police Resources; NJDOT crash records 2023 to 2025, our analysis, read 6 to 10 November 2026.
- NJ DOBI Auto Insurance Buyer's Guide 2026, pp. 2, 6; DOBI health insurance as primary
- N.J.S.A. 2A:15-5.1; NJ DOBI comparative negligence FAQ
- N.J.S.A. 39:4-130; NJDOT self-reporting crash form
- N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2; N.J.S.A. 59:8-8
How we counted
- NJDOT records with route number 36 and a state road prefix, including named forms such as "NJ 36 (JOLINE AVENUE)". The Monmouth County road also numbered 36 is left out.
- "Hurt or killed" means at least one person injured or killed. Accident types are the officer's code.
- Two-year figures use 2023 and 2024. Town figures use 2024, since 2023 looks short in West Long Branch, Long Branch and Eatontown.
- Cross streets and deaths add 2025, which is preliminary. Cross-street spelling variants are merged, so counts are a floor.
- Towns follow median milepost. One 2025 record in Tinton Falls is not shown.