"Bicycle and pedestrian facilities and programs are an integral part of our nation's transportation system for the 21st century. Our national transportation system must meet the needs of all our customers, including bicyclists."
- FHWA Administrator Mary Peters, quoting Secretary Norman Mineta
at the League of American Bicyclists 2002 Bike Summit
Grant will help build bridge at Jasna Polana Princeton Packet, January 10, 2003
A giant step on trail toward livable future Princeton Packet, November 19, 2002
Dealing and wheeling The Trenton Times, November 17, 2002
Bike path draws all-around praise The Trenton Times, November 13, 2002
West Windsor Recreational Trails and Bikeways Committee Recommendation, September 30, 2002
Cycling commuters get a push from recognition day, Princeton Packet, June 4, 2002
Princeton ranks first in sidewalk shuffle, The Trenton Times, May 24, 2002
W. Windsor cyclists peddle desire for more bike paths, The Trenton Times, April 28, 2002
Again, NJ DOT Shorts Cities and Towns, Mobilizing the Region, April 15, 2002
Bicycle Advocates Gear Up for Reauthorization, Surface Transportation Policy Project (STPP), January 24, 2002
Paris Nominates Bicycle Chief, Associated Press, December 17, 2001
Something's afoot, Philadelphia Inquirer, November 23, 2001
Bike Plan Could Alleviate City's Traffic Planetizen.com Newsletter
Bike, foot paths proposed to link W. Windsor The Trenton Times, June 12, 2001
Grant will help build bridge at Jasna Polana
By: David Campbell , Staff Writer 01/10/2003
Pedestrian span will cross Stony Brook near The Hun School of Princeton.
Princeton Township has been awarded a $78,000 state grant to pay part of the cost of a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge across Stony Brook that would link a trail at Tournament Players Club at Jasna Polana with township lands east of the brook just north of The Hun School.
The grant was part of a funding package for six municipalities in the 15th Legislative District announced last week by Sen. Shirley Turner (D-Lawrence), Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Princeton Borough) and Assemblywoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-Ewing).
A total of $508,000 will be shared among Ewing, Hopewell Township, Lawrence, Pennington Borough, Princeton Township and Trenton under the state Department of Transportation's Livable Communities Pilot Program.
Awards are pending for Princeton Borough, which requested funding through the state Department of Environmental Protection's Livable Communities Pilot Program.
"These awards will help to maintain and enhance our towns' transportation systems without burdening local taxpayers with the costs of the projects," Sen. Turner said.
Assemblyman Gusciora said, "The projects being implemented will help our local towns to meet important goals while improving the quality of life for their residents."
The township recently received $500,000 from the federal Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century toward the Stony Brook bridge project, said Township Engineer Robert Kiser.
The new bridge would provide a "missing link" in the township's linear-walkway system along the Stony Brook, Mr. Kiser said.
©Packet Online 2003
A giant step on trail toward livable future
By: Packet Editorial 11/19/2002
PACKET EDITORIAL, Nov. 19
Preserving open space has become a high priority for communities throughout central New Jersey, where developers have gobbled up large chunks of farmland and forest over the last 20 years and suburban sprawl has steadily eaten away at the once-rural landscape.
In Princeton Township, two large parcels of valuable property - the R.W. Johnson estate on Rosedale Road and Coventry Farm on The Great Road - were purchased in the past year by the Delaware & Raritan Greenway, with the help of private contributions and proceeds from the open-space taxes of both the township and the borough. The township itself then acquired most of the 40-acre Gulick farm off Princeton-Kingston Road and dedicated it as open space.
Montgomery Township has been very aggressive lately in its acquisition of open space, having committed more than 5,700 acres - 27 percent of its total acreage - to preservation in some form. In West Windsor, which has the highest open-space tax in the state (7 cents per $100 of assessed value) and an extremely active nonprofit organization (Friends of West Windsor Open Space), a total of 7,861 acres, or nearly 47 percent of the township, including county land, has now been protected from commercial development. Plainsboro has preserved 3,680 acres, or about 50 percent of its total acreage.
These are impressive numbers. They represent substantial commitments on the part of area municipalities to keep large portions of available land free from development, to be enjoyed by residents either for active recreation or in an undisturbed, natural state. But these commitments come at enormous cost, reflected not only in the public portion of the purchase price of the preserved land but in the tax revenues foregone by making this land off-limits to future development.
In a state that is so heavily dependent on property taxes to fund municipal, county and school budgets, the permanent removal of so much developable land from the tax rolls adds to the burden on existing property owners - who appear willing, to this point at least, to pay the price for open-space preservation. Voter support for municipal open-space taxes has been strong in our region, and no opposition has arisen to any of the recent open-space purchases made in any area municipalities.
But there is a limit to what the taxpayers will be willing to bear as land becomes more expensive and the tax consequences of major open-space purchases become more burdensome. That is why the announcement last week of a 20-mile bikeway and walking trail that will loop through corporate and school campuses, parkland and open-space preserves in nearby Lawrence and Hopewell townships is so significant - and welcome. It represents a major commitment on the part of area businesses to join with taxpayers and private contributors in funding local preservation efforts.
Bristol-Myers Squibb headed up this effort, pledging $1 million to build the portions of the trail that will link its three corporate campuses. Educational Testing Services has committed $250,000 to support future maintenance of the trail, which also will run through its campus. Another $1.2 million will come from Mercer County. And the newly formed nonprofit Lawrence Hopewell Trail Corp. will seek additional funding from the state Green Acres program, the state Department of Transportation and other public and private sources.
The total price tag for the project is $6 million, and organizers are confident they will raise it all in time for construction of 16 miles of the trail to begin in 2003 (about 4 miles of the trail already exist) and the whole project to be finished in fall 2004.
We're not at all sure this project will fulfill the wildest dreams of its more ardent supporters. (We doubt, for example, that huge numbers of ETS and Bristol-Myers Squibb employees will now bike, walk, jog or skate to work, thereby relieving traffic congestion throughout the region.) But we do know that this is the kind of public-private partnership that will truly preserve land for future generations - by making it more affordable for this one.
©Packet Online 2002
Note: The Bristol-Myers Squib press release about the 20-mile bike trail includes a trail map.
Go to
http://www.bms.com/news/other/data/fg_other_news_3265.html
then scroll down the page and click on the link under the green triangular LHT icon for a pdf map.
Sunday, November 17, 2002
BY EDITORIAL
Bicycling on safe routes offers nothing but good things to individuals and the community. It's healthful, it's fun, and when it functions as transportation in place of the automobile it reduces pollution and traffic congestion and saves fuel. To make safe cycling practical and inviting is to provide a great public service.
For that reason, all who took part in planning a 20-mile bike trail through Lawrence and Hopewell townships and all whose promises of financial support will make its construction possible are entitled to thanks.
The trail will link three Bristol-Myers Squibb corporate centers and the Educational Testing Service headquarters, which together employ about 8,300 people, many of whom will be use it for recreational biking or commuting. It also will pass through the Lawrenceville School, Mercer County Park Northwest, Rosedale Park and the Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association Reserve. Parts of the loop will run along the shoulders of existing streets and roads, which will be widened where necessary; other parts will run parallel to roads but be offset from them. "Safety is our first priority," said Becky Taylor, director of corporate affairs for Bristol-Myers Squibb.
Financial backing will come from Bristol-Myers, where the idea for the trail originated. The company will spend $1 million to build paved portions on its three corporate locations. ETS has pledged a $250,000 endowment to maintain the trail, and Mercer County has earmarked $1.2 million to extend it through the parks and to build bathroom and parking facilities. Additional funds will be raised by a committee of business and government leaders.
As Mercer County Executive Robert Prunetti said, "This is a prime example of the private sector, government and private citizens getting together to make life better for everybody." For Bristol-Myers Squibb and ETS, participation is part of a long tradition of providing funds and facilities to worthy projects that make their community a better place to live.
Copyright 2002 The Times.
Bike path draws all-around praise
Wednesday, November 13, 2002
By JOSEPH DEE
LAWRENCE - Gas pedals will give way to bicycle pedals along a new 20-mile trail that will loop through two Mercer County towns.
Hailed as a recreational asset and a resource that will give options to commuters who normally drive to work, the $6 million Lawrence Hopewell Trail was unveiled by business and government leaders yesterday.
The trail, which will be reserved for walkers, joggers, skaters, bicyclists and wheelchair users, will form a loop in Lawrence and Hopewell townships. It will link three Bristol-Myers Squibb corporate centers and the Educational Testing Service headquarters, which together employ about 8,300 people.
"Ten months ago, Bristol-Myers Squibb invited people to try to create a trail," said Bristol-Myers senior director Louis Fedele. During those discussions, "The trail grew from several miles to the 20-mile Lawrence Hopewell Trail."
The trail, which also will pass through the Lawrenceville School, Mercer County Park Northwest, Rosedale Park and the Stoney Brook-Millstone Watershed Association Reserve, is expected to be completed in the fall of 2004.
About four miles of the trail already exist. Construction of the remaining portion is scheduled to start in the fall of 2003. Grants are being sought by a committee of citizens and business and government leaders.
"It was apparent this was a great idea," Rep. Rush Holt, D-Hopewell Township, said at the news conference, which attracted 120 people to ETS' Chauncey Center on Rosedale Road. "The only thing that surprises me is how quickly it came together."
During a luncheon that followed the announcement, Princeton Freewheelers bicycle club member Harri Nowrey of Hamilton said, "We're real excited about this loop."
"It will make the busy roads safer, especially if they widen the shoulders," said fellow club member Norene Barish, also of Hamilton.
Holt said he is cosponsor of the pending Bike Commuter Act, which would extend to bicycle commuters tax-exempt financial benefits that corporations can give to car-poolers and those who use commuter parking lots.
"This is a tremendous endeavor," Mercer County Executive Robert D. Prunetti said. "This is a prime example of the private sector, government and private citizens getting together to make life better for everybody."
Bristol-Myers Squibb has pledged $1 million to build portions of the paved trail that will be on its three corporate locations. Mercer County has earmarked $1.2 million in next year's budget to build the trail through its parks and to build bathroom and parking facilities. And ETS has pledged a $250,000 endowment to maintain the trail.
Parts of the trail will run along shoulders of existing streets and roads, and other parts will run parallel to roads but offset from them, said Bristol-Myers director of corporate affairs Becky Taylor, who was praised by many speakers at the news conference as the catalyst for the project.
"We'll look to see what's needed in terms of extending shoulders and putting up (signs)," Taylor said. "We have to go over the route inch-by-inch, and obviously we will, because safety is our first priority."
After the news conference, Holt said a member of an environmentalist organization indicated a wish that the trail skirt the Carson Road Woods, instead of cut through it.
Informed of this concern, Taylor said some modifications to the proposed route could be made as the plan advances. "We'll take into consideration whatever input people provide," she said.
State Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bradley Campbell praised the plan "for achieving the objective of smart growth. I'm grateful for the role we've been allowed to play in this." He promised to provide support "wherever we can in the future."
State Sen. Shirley Turner, D-Lawrence, echoed the view that the trail is a shining example of public and private sectors working together. "I look forward to bicycling on this trail," she said.
Prunetti said the bathroom and parking facilities that will be built in Mercer County Park Northwest will be close enough to be of use to bikers and other users of the trail and will be located "near the area of the park that will be more active, and not intrude on the natural areas."
Others who praised the plan were Lawrence Township Councilwoman Pamela Mount and Hopewell Township Planning Board member Kathy Bird.
Copyright 2002 The Times.
West Windsor Recreational Trails and Bikeways Committee
Recommendation for a Bicycle/Pedestrian Bridge over Route 1
To: Jon Carnegie, Project Manager, Penns Neck Area EIS; the EIS Project Team, and the EIS Partners' Roundtable
Date: 9/30/02
Statement of Problem:
The Recreational Trails and Bikeway Committee (RTBC), a committee of the Friends of West Windsor Open Space (:FOWWOS), is a volunteer group whose mission is to facilitate the development of a township-wide system of bikeways and recreational trails A primary objective of the committee is to develop safe crossings of Route 1 for bicyclists and pedestrians. It is well recognized that Route 1 poses a significant barrier in our township and in essence divides our community. A consequence of this barrier is that there exists no safe crossing of Route 1 for pedestrians or bicyclists. The at-grade crossings of Route 1 (i.e., Harrison Street, Washington Road, and Carnegie Center Drive) are clearly dangerous places for pedestrians and bicyclists. The overpasses of Route 1 (i.e., Alexander Road, Meadow Road, and Quakerbridge Road), are even less safe, particularly for bicyclists, due to the system of access ramps and high traffic volumes and speedsThe lack of adequate bicycle and pedestrian crossings prohibits area residents from safely traversing Route 1 in anything other than a car. This issue is especially significant for school-age children, leading to their total dependence on their parents' automobiles for local trips to visit friends or take part in after-school activities. The lack of a safe crossing also discourages commuting by bicycle or foot between West Windsor and Princeton. In addition, by discouraging walking and cycling, the current Route 1 barrier does not facilitate modes of travel that promote fitness and health. All of these factors contribute significantly to the current automobile congestion on area roadways and decrease mobility throughout the Penns Neck area.
Proposed Solution:
The recommendations that will come out of the Penns Neck Area EIS (Environmental Impact Statement) process will have significant impact on bicycle and pedestrian mobility in our area for many years to come. We strongly feel that enhanced bicycle and pedestrian mobility should be part of the road improvements that will be made in the Penns Neck area. Consequently, bike lanes and sidewalks should be added to all newly constructed roads and any overpass should be designed for safe use by bicyclists and pedestrians as well as cars. In addition, as a more comprehensive solution to the problem of bicycle and pedestrian mobility, we propose that a dedicated bicycle/pedestrian bridge be constructed over Route 1 as part of the road improvements that are now being considered. Such a bridge would give residents of West Windsor, as well as Princeton Borough, Princeton Township, and Plainsboro, their first opportunity for a safe crossing of Route 1. The development of a bicycle/pedestrian bridge is entirely consistent with one of the stated goals of the Penns Neck Area EIS: to relieve congestion by encouraging fewer auto trips and promoting alternate trip modes Of note, a bicycle/pedestrian bridge was proposed as part of the original Penns Neck Area Congestion Management System. On page 8-3 of the report produced for that study, it is stated that "NJDOT is committed to providing a feasibility study to allow pedestrian access across Rt. 1 "We recommend that the bicycle/pedestrian bridge be located immediately south of the Dinky Railroad Bridge. A bridge in this location could link up with an existing and partially complete bicycle/pedestrian path that extends from University Square to the Princeton Junction train station, traversing behind businesses on Alexander Road. West of Route 1 the bridge could link up to a proposed bicycle/pedestrian path that would extend to the Delaware and Raritan Canal either in parallel to the Dinky railroad tracks or along Alexander Road. This bridge location provides the best possible solution for east/west bicycle and pedestrian traffic because it optimizes west-bound access to the Canal, the Canal Pointe neighborhood, and Princeton University and east-bound access to the train station, Carnegie Center, businesses along Alexander Road, and residential neighborhoods such as Penns Neck and Berrien City. We recommend that this bridge be developed regardless of which Millstone Bypass alternative is selected
Summary.
It is clear that future road improvements in the Penns Neck area must include alternatives for non-vehicular traffic if any impact is to be made on area mobility. These road improvements should include a safe means for bicyclists and pedestrians to cross Route 1. We strongly urge that the Penns Neck Area EIS include a recommendation for a bicycle/pedestrian bridge over Route I . Incorporating such a bridge into the Penns Neck area road improvements would greatly enhance area mobility by giving people of all ages, including school-age children, the ability to travel safely cross Route 1 by foot or by bicycle It is recommended that this bridge be constructed regardless of the bypass alternative that is ultimately selected.If you have any questions, feel free to contact either of the chairpersons of the RTBC, Ken Naglak (naglak@earthlink.net) or Ken Carlson (kecarlson@comcast.net).
cc: Newell Benedict, president of the West Windsor Recreation Commission; Linda R. Greenstein, Assemblywoman; Gary Guear, Assemblyman; Rush Holt, U.S Representative; Shing-Fu Hsueh, Mayor of West Windsor; Peter Inverso, State Senator; Anthony Sabidussi, NJDOT; Mike Suber, President of the Princeton Sidewalk and Bikeway Advisory Committee; Sam Surtees, West Windsor Director of Community Development; The Mayor's Bicycle and Pedestrian Task Force; West Windsor Township Council; West Windsor Planning Board; FOWWOS Board Members
Cycling commuters get a push from recognition day
By: David Campbell , Staff Writer 06/04/2002
Greater Mercer Transportation Management Association rolls out the red carpet.The Greater Mercer Transportation Management Association sponsored its first Bike to Work Day at Kopp's Cycle Shop on Spring Street on Friday to spread the word about the joys of two-wheeling it in the morning.
TMA Executive Director Sandra Brillhart said the event was one of the ways TMA is seeking to explore and promote alternatives to single-occupancy auto travel and the traffic problems it causes.
"Bicycles are vehicles, and bicycles have a right to be on the road as well," Ms. Brillhart said.
"It's all about environmentally friendly, healthy means of transportation. In Princeton, I think it's particularly important because it can address a lot of parking problems here."
That may be true, but for the cyclists stopping enroute outside Kopp's Cycle, it seemed to be all about the exercise, sun and fresh air - not to mention the free coffee, juice and power bars compliments of Small World Coffee and The Whole Earth Center.
"It feels like a treat not to be stuck in traffic," said Karla Vecchia, who stopped in at Kopp's on her way to her job in the Rare Books Division of Princeton University's Firestone Library.
Ms. Vecchia said she and her fiancée, who works at Princeton Day School, try to bicycle to work regularly from their Princeton residence. "To not use our car every day is a pretty good thing," she said.
Princeton Township Mayor Phyllis Marchand, who was on hand to commemorate the event, said, "We're all working very hard to make Princeton as bicycle-friendly a place as possible."
The mayor noted that the new township municipal building, slated to open on Witherspoon Street in June or July, will provide ample bike racks, and added: "Think of the money you save when you bike instead of join a gym."
Geri Karpiscak, coordinator of The Medical Center at Princeton's Cardiac and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Center, offered cyclists free blood pressure screenings - cycling, she said, helps maintain good blood pressure.
Richard Kerr, director of performance standards with NJ Transit, said the transportation agency has been "liberalizing" its bike policies over the years, promoting bikes on trains and buses as well as placing racks and bike lockers at stations.
Mr. Kerr said NJ Transit provides "parking" for around 2,000 bicycles at bus and train stations statewide, and said Princeton Junction train station in West Windsor offers one of the largest bike-park facilities nationwide. He said there is a waiting list for the 60 bike lockers available there.
"There is just an insatiable demand," Mr. Kerr said. "Most of the bicyclists we are carrying are not the enthusiasts in bright shirts. They're just regular people trying to get somewhere."
Whole Earth Center Trustee Bobbi Parmet, who showed up Friday on her Schwinn Crossfit, said the center likes to sponsor "anything that gets cars off the road," and said events like this help promote more livable cities and towns.
Whole Earth, in cooperation with Kopp's, offers its customers "Pedal Power" cards - cyclists who show the card at checkout have it punched for every $10 purchase, and after 10 punches they can redeem it at Kopp's for free bicycle parts.
"I just cashed in my first card," Ms. Parmet said, "and I bought a pump."
Kopp's owner Charles Kuhn said he was pleased with the turnout Friday morning.
"It's exciting to see all the riders I see coming in individually all gathered in one spot to support biking to work," Mr. Kuhn said.
©Packet Online 2002
Princeton ranks first in sidewalk shuffle
Friday, May 24, 2002
By KATHY HENNESSY
PRINCETON BOROUGH - As a freelance court reporter, Kate Warren used to take the train from her Princeton home to jobs all over Manhattan.
But in the past year she traded in her boarding pass for comfortable loafers with a job just a 10-minute walk from her Jefferson Road house. She gained nearly five hours a day of time, an appreciation for nature and a commute that makes doing errands a breeze.
"It's liberating not sitting in traffic," said Warren, research director for the Center for Interim Programs on Nassau Street. "I have so much more free time to sit in my garden or read after work."
More people walk to work in Princeton than in any other municipality in New Jersey, according to U.S. Census figures that show 35.6 percent of all workers in the borough have a sidewalk commute. It is down from 1990, when 47.3 percent of Princeton employees walked to work.
Twenty-one percent of workers walk to the job in Atlantic City, where many people work at the casinos and half the households don't have a vehicle. Walking is also the preferred commute for about a fifth of workers in Cape May.
It is hardly the norm. In a state where residents identify their hometown by New Jersey Turnpike exit numbers, it's no surprise that most people drive alone to work.
Of New Jersey workers aged 16 and over, 73 percent drive to work alone. Those who car pool are a distant second, making up 10.6 percent of all workers. Commuters who use public transit make up 9.6 percent and walkers are 3.1 percent.
Transportation experts blame the suburbanization of the state after World War II for changing the landscape from city-based to one in which homes, offices and shopping areas are spread out. Public transit systems often don't cover those suburban locations.
"People who travel to those areas have to drive," said Martin Robins, director of the Voorhees Transportation Policy Institute at Rutgers University.
Princeton is unique because its downtown has the rare combination of white-collar jobs, good schools and housing stock all within walking distance, said James Hughes, dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University.
"Many other employment centers are in cites where family-raising households do not find the school systems desirable," Hughes said.
City planners have looked to the borough as a model for integrating living, working and retail in a central downtown environment.
"Princeton is like the test tube, it is the form that people would like to replicate," Robins said.
The village-like atmosphere was one of the reasons Len Teti stayed in the borough after graduating from Princeton University. He now works for the university's admissions office, just a short walk from his home.
"I like being able to think about the day and decompress on the way home," Teti said.
For most New Jersey workers, however, going to work means contending with traffic congestion and jobs that are increasingly further from their homes. The average commuting time is a half hour, up from 1990 when it was 25.3 minutes.
While the majority of New Jersey workers live in the suburbs and drive to work, public transportation is popular for those who hop trains to Manhattan, particularly in towns like Hoboken and Weehawken. In Hoboken, more than half the residents take mass transit to work.
Statewide, only 9.6 percent of commuters take public transit to the job. Newly opened rail lines and a project to add light rail in Burlington County that will link Philadelphia and Trenton, have given transportation experts hope more commuters will ride trains and buses.
Already, there has been increased development along newly opened stops on the New York-bound lines. In towns along the 2-year-old Hudson-Bergen line, such as Bayonne, people are buying homes so they can be within walking distance of the train, Robins said.
"People are reorganizing their lives to take advantage of these lines," Robins said. "People really respond to these projects."
Copyright 2002 The Times.
W. Windsor cyclists peddle desire for more bike paths
Sunday, April 28, 2002
By KAREN AYRES
WEST WINDSOR - Nearly 30 residents completed a seven-mile bike tour of the township under the bright sun yesterday afternoon as part of a program designed to promote the construction of more bike and pedestrian pathways throughout the town.
The event, which was sponsored by the Recreational Trails and Bikeways Committee of Friends of West Windsor Open Space, also drew about 10 children who completed a shorter mile-long tour in Community Park.
Organizers said traffic will improve in town if more bike paths are built because fewer residents will use cars.
``It's a great alternative form of transportation,'' said Ken Naglak, a committee chairman.
David Hingston, who rides more than 4,000 miles a year, said the township needs more bike paths.
``We really love to ride bikes,'' Hingston said. ``It's something we really ought to support.''
Ken Carlson, another committee chairman, said the tour, which started and ended at the park, was scheduled entirely on the east side of Route 1 for safety reasons.
``Right now, there is no safe way for cyclists of any age to cross the train tracks or Route 1,'' Carlson said.
Art Pope, who has lived in West Windsor for six years, rode the children's course with his two sons. Pope said he often schedules time to bike when he knows traffic on nearby roads will be light.
``We at least feel we could come out more if there were bike paths on the road,'' Pope said. ``We love to ride with our kids.''
Mike Suber of Princeton Township said he came to show support for West Windsor's efforts at fostering a bike pathway system. Suber works with Princetonians who also are working to implement a bike system, he said.
``There are some issues with which we can collaborate,'' Suber said. ``Our goal is to make the area more livable.''
Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh said he hopes the bike tour will become an annual event. Hsueh said he is working with county officials to bring more paths to the township.
``If we can develop more bicycle trails in town, people are going to realize they don't need to be in their cars all the time,'' Hsueh said.
Copyright 2002 The Times.
Again, NJ DOT Shorts Cities and Towns
Mobilizing the Region, Tri-State Transportation Campaign Issue 361 April 15, 2002
Under New Jersey DOT's proposed 2003 capital program, local aid projects for road preservation and bicycle and pedestrian projects will again be funded well below demonstrated levels of need. Trust Fund dollars for local roads are consistently in high demand. Requested amounts for bicycle and pedestrian projects have also risen steadily - by last year nearly $60 million in projects went unfunded.
For each of the past four years, demand for aid to municipalities has outstripped available funds by over $100 million. This is true even though DOT began devoting $9 million more for aid to municipalities in FY2001. Last year, for example, DOT received 931 applications totaling $182 million. With the $67.5 million budgeted for municipalities to fix roads, only 424 projects were funded. Under DOT's capital investment strategy, municipalities would continue to receive the same $67.5 million from 2003 to 2005. At the same time, DOT is reserving big portions of its capital budget for unidentified projects it will fund at its discretion (MTR #360).
Demand for bicycle and pedestrian improvements have risen sharply in the last four years - the amount requested is up 35% from 1999-2001. Although Trust Fund spending for bicycle and pedestrian projects stays at the same low level of $11 million, a $4.25 million infusion federal CMAQ funds freed from the state's failed vehicle inspection program will make up some of the shortfall. $3 million in additional state funds will also go to specific state pedestrian projects at Bridgewater Mall and along Route 130. Despite these gains, even if demand for bicycle and pedestrian projects stays level, next year's shortfall is likely to be near $50 million.
see graph at http://www.tstc.org/bulletin/20020415/mtr36102.htm
Bicycle Advocates Gear Up for Reauthorization
Report from Surface Transportation Policy Project (STPP)
TRANSFER - Vol. 8, Issue 1
Jan. 24, 2002To see Transfer online, visit http://www.transact.org
Bikes Belong, an organization of bicycle manufacturers, has pledged $500,000 to support a new campaign by the top national bicycling organizations to push for pro-bicycling policies in the reauthorization of TEA-21. The new bike TEA-3 campaign coalition plans to hire Martha Roskowski, Executive Director of Bicycle Colorado, to manage the campaign.
The coalition includes the Adventure Cycling Association, the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals, the Bikes Belong Coalition, the International Mountain Bicycling Association, the League of American Bicyclists, the National Center for Bicycling & Walking, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, and the Thunderhead Alliance. STPP is a non-voting member of
the group."Bikes Belong is following through with its commitment to put more people on bikes more often by supporting this major legislative battle," said John Burke, President of the Bikes Belong Coalition.
Meanwhile, the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals (APBP) has issued its platform for reauthorization, which aims to mainstream bicycling and walking, strengthen the role of bicycle and pedestrian programs established in ISTEA and TEA-21, and to initiate new programs. For more information on APBP's legislative agenda for reauthorization, visit
www.apbp.org.
December 17, 2001
PARIS (AP) - The mayor of Paris on Monday nominated Jean-Luc Marchal to become the city's first bicycle policy chief, part of the French capital's plans to develop transportation that does not pollute.Marchal, who previously was in charge of developing Strasbourg's bike path system, is expected to give ``a new dimension to Parisian bike policy,'' said Denis Baupin, an assistant to Mayor Bertrand Delanoe.
The eastern city of Strasbourg is expected to have 300 miles of bike paths by 2004.
``Strasbourg is today the reference city for the development of using bikes. The ambition is that, in a couple of years, Paris will be considered the model for the adaptation of the bike,'' Baupin said.
Paris has plans to increase its 96 miles of bike paths in the next three years.
from: http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20011217/wl/paris_bicycle_chief_1.html
Sidewalks can turn no-pedestrian zones in suburbs into walkable communities.
Editorial, Philadelphia Inquirer, November 23, 2001
The ancient Romans had it figured out. As a Chicago writer noted recently, "Busy chariot and horse-drawn cart traffic would have made streets dangerous for pedestrians."
So savvy Romans used sidewalks to navigate on foot.
Visit Pompeii, and you'll see those early sidewalks in the raised areas flanking the rutted streets preserved by Vesuvius' lava.
Centuries later, New Yorkers even had a song extolling the virtues of their sidewalks - places where "boys and girls together . . . tripped the light fantastic."
Of course, the safety and comfort of sidewalks always has been something of an illusion - a fact illustrated today whenever cars hop a curb, or in medieval times when householders emptied chamber pots from upper windows.
But as opposed to having no sidewalks at all? Now, that's dangerous.
Which makes you wonder about the sad, declining fortune of the sidewalk in the American suburb over the last half-century.
In suburban developments of a certain age - say, going back a couple of decades - sidewalks simply were often left off the drawing boards.
Some builders wanted to achieve a rural look, no doubt. Others figured few cars ever would ply these tree-lined streets, thus pedestrians would be in little danger.
What seemed like a good idea at the time, though, has become a head-scratching puzzle to many of today's suburban inhabitants.
Recent case in point: In the Montgomery County communities of Plymouth and Whitemarsh, sidewalk-less streets near schools prompt some parents to drive their youngsters to class - even though it's a distance of only a couple of blocks.
Walk to the local Wawa or 7-Eleven? Not easily in these or many other suburban communities where, in residential areas blessed with sidewalks, the walks often stop at the main road.
So at a time when walkable communities are all the rage, when a key strategy to slow the spread of sprawl development is to tend to older, fraying suburbs, the lowly sidewalk deserves a higher profile.
The goals: Plug gaps in the patchwork of sidewalks that exist, and promote new-construction guidelines that require sidewalks or at least provide incentives to pave the way for walkers.
It's not feasible, or particularly fair, to suggest that home owners individually retrofit their front lawns with sidewalks. That's prohibitively costly, and hardly likely to result in a coordinated approach.
But as the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission is promoting for Plymouth and Whitemarsh, sidewalk improvements are worthy of funding under Harrisburg programs to revitalize older communities.
In the two townships, nearly $575,000 in state money is being sought to pave 7,500 feet of sidewalk along Butler Pike. That would transform what's now a pedestrian no-go zone - and put businesses, apartments and transit stops within safe reach of people on foot.
It's good to see that some area municipalities, such as Upper Merion and Montgomery Townships, are requiring sidewalks to be part of new developments - as is mostly true in Bucks County.
That should be the rule across the suburbs of South Jersey and Philadelphia - even in Chester County where large-lot zoning hasn't helped the cause of pavements.
With more sidewalks, strolling safely in suburban communities could be saved from becoming a dying art confined to the golf course.
Bike, foot paths proposed to link W. Windsor
06/12/01
By KAREN AYRES
Staff WriterWEST WINDSOR -- In a township facing virtually insurmountable traffic problems, it's important to be able to get around without a vehicle, some residents say.
Bicycle paths and several sidewalk construction projects proposed in the master plan draft are designed to provide those links between residential, recreation and commercial properties.
The system was proposed primarily for recreational use, township zoning officer Sam Surtees said.
Commuters, who are facing heavy congestion on the roads, also could opt to use the pathways as a method of getting to work, Surtees said. Part of the proposal includes suggestions for bike parking facilities at several locations, including the Princeton Junction train station.
"We want to put this thing in for the enjoyment of the residents," Surtees said. "We're committed."
A proposal for a bike-path network likely will be presented at tomorrow night's planning board meeting as members continue to discuss a traffic study presented last week.
The only regulation bicycle lane now available in the township is on New Village Road between Grover Middle School and North Post Road, Surtees said.
A small lane also is provided on Edinburgh Road in the Princeton Oaks development. There are also a few bike pathways in Community Park.
The master plan draft proposes constructing a network of 4-foot bicycle lanes throughout the township and providing several pathways on properties acquired by the township for open space preservation.
The pathways probably would be used for recreation but the lanes could provide another avenue for transportation. "There are areas that already lend themselves to it," said planning board member Larry Hollander. "We have to take a stronger look."
Most of the sidewalk improvements suggested in the master plan draft would be on main roads outside residential developments, Surtees said. The township has installed several sidewalks in the last few years and future projects could link the entire township to a sidewalk network.
Residents have complained during several planning board sessions reviewing the master plan draft that the township is not accessible to pedestrians or bikers.
Berrien City and Princeton Junction residents have voiced concern as proposals in the master plan draft call for expanding sections of Alexander Road to four lanes, which some believe would ruin the pedestrian-friendly character of those neighborhoods.
Surtees said any future road projects will leave enough room for bike lanes. Funding for the lanes, which likely will take years to entirely construct, will come from the township and possibly the state, he said.
Copyright 2001 The Times
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