Report sheds light on county's need for pedestrian and bicyclist safety
By Jason Cohen
The Tri-State Transportation Campaign released its findings in a July 2008 report titled: Skimping on Sidewalks 2008: An analysis of Pedestrian Fatalities in
The report stated more than 160 pedestrians and bicyclists were killed in
One project that was created by the state was the 2008 State Bikeways Program. For this project, East Brunswick requested $350,000, Edison requested $77,350, and
Erin Phalon, spokeswoman for the New Jersey Department of Transportation, said under Governor Jon S. Corzine the NJDOT has funded bicycle and pedestrian safety heavily and will continue to fund it heavily into the future.
"East Brunswick, Edison, and
Phalon said that other projects that were proposed better served the public, and the selection was very competitive.
"The New Jersey Department of Transportation gives special consideration to bikeways that are physically separated from motorized vehicular traffic by an open space or barrier," she said. "In addition, NJDOT requires grant projects to be delivered to construction within 18 months of grant agreement execution."
She said that
"Project evaluation considers five categories for a total score of 25 points: program criteria, project need, readiness to construct, applicant performance and application priority," Phalon said. "The recommendations of the bikeway review committee are based on the overall scores."
George M. Ververides, the director of
"The NJDOT sent a letter saying the construction projects didn't meet the outlines of the criteria," he said. "We are disappointed and we really tried to push for the applications and we will try again next year. We just didn't meet the criteria."
The four counties awarded the most money by the NJDOT were:
John Riggs, the chairman of the Environmental Commission of Monroe confirmed that
"We applied to provide help for a quarter-mile bikeway," Riggs said. "We hoped to get help from the state but we didn't. They were missing funds at the state level, not the worthiness of the project; it was the lack of funds."
Riggs said that next year the Environmental Commission is going to reapply for more funds for a planed five-mile trail going through to Spotswood and Helmetta.
"We push grant programs hard, and they have the money there waiting to hand it to you, but if they only have a certain amount to give they can't give it to everyone," Riggs said. "After doing all of this work and no result we are very disappointed."
David Baron of the New Jersey Transportation Planning Authority agreed with Riggs; the money just wasn't there to give to every county and every project.
"The 2008 State Bikeways Program is state administered, but the 2007 Federal Safe Routes to School program, that is also in the report, deals with federal funds only and that is solely what the NJTPA deals with," Baron said.
Baron said many towns throughout the state applied for money for the 2007 Feredal Safe Routes to School Program; however, statewide there was only $4.5 million available to be given out to towns, while $74 million was requested throughout the state.
"Additionally, I can confirm that East Brunswick applied for $396,000, Edison applied for $71,000, and Highland park applied for $401,078, and all three of them received nothing," Baron said.
Jerry Barca, spokesman for Edison Mayor Jun Choi, said
"We plan to put bike racks on Route 27, in all of the parks, and overall the quality-of-life has improved greatly for bicyclists," Barca said. "More importantly, there will be a better quality-of-life for bicyclists, it helps take cares off the road and creates a better community."