A downed power pole near Maple Avenue in Elizabeth caused a mess in the Tuesday morning commute.

Police say a parked van was hit by another car on Routes 1 and 9 Sunday, sending it crashing into the pole. The pole then came down Monday night, and was sitting on top of a parked car in a used car dealership lot.

Traffic on Routes 1 and 9 was reduced to two lanes, but has since been fully reopened.

The owner of Manny's Auto, which owns the lot where the pole came down, says he expected the pole to come down eventually because it has been hit so many times.

Police say they believe the pole came down because it was hit multiple times.