The North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA) has approved its annual Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), a three-year, $5.6 billion investment agenda for 13 counties in northern and central New Jersey.
The FY 2004-2006 TIP, which was approved by the NJTPA Board of Trustees at its July 14 meeting, authorizes spending on road, bridge, rail, bus, pedestrian, bicycle and passenger ferry projects and programs in the 13-county region.
“This investment program addresses the most important transportation needs of the entire NJTPA region,” said Monmouth County Freeholder Theodore J. Narozanick, who serves as Chairman of the NJTPA Board of Trustees.
Details on TIP projects in the region are available through the NJTPA web site at www.njtpa.org (follow the Project Information link ).
The first year of the TIP calls for approximately $2.1 billion in spending, with New Jersey Department of Transportation projects and programs receiving about $1 billion and NJ Transit projects and programs receiving roughly $1.1 billion. Over all three fiscal years covered by the TIP, NJDOT will receive $2.9 billion in funding, with NJ Transit receiving $2.6 billion.
In keeping with the goals and policies of the NJTPA Regional Transportation Plan and state policies, the TIP takes a “fix it first” approach to investments, with approximately 70 percent of all funding for highway, bridge and transit projects going toward repair, maintenance and system management projects in the program’s first year.
“The NJTPA has prepared a balanced program that addresses the unique needs of northern New Jersey during a time of great fiscal challenges,” said Joel S. Weiner, NJTPA Executive Director. Some key projects include:
• $92 million to replace the Victory Bridge over the Raritan River in Middlesex County;
• The final $27 million for the $150 million extension of the Newark – Elizabeth Rail Link connecting Broad Street Station to Newark Penn Station, which is being built in concert with the $62 million Route 21 widening project in Newark and Essex County;
• More than $2 million for engineering, right-of-way acquisition and reconstruction of an intermodal facility on Bergenline Avenue in Union City to replace the NJ Transit depot in Hudson County;
• $31 million for Route 17/Essex Street bridge replacement in Bergen County;
• $10 million for the Mantoloking Bridge over Barnegat Bay in Ocean County;
• $57 million for interchange improvements at the confluence of Routes 23, 46 & I-80 in Passaic County;
• $4.79 million for the completion of intersection improvements at Route 9 and County Route 524 and Jackson Mills Road in Freehold Township in Monmouth County.n $7 million for the rehabilitation of the historic Bridge Street Bridge over the Trenton Line in Somerset County;
• $14 million for improvements on Route 206 from Waterloo Road to Brookwood Road in Byram in Sussex County;
• $72 million for the Elizabeth River Bridge in Union County; and
• $5 million for the Hope Road Bridge over the Lackawanna Cut-off in Warren County.
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| Assemblyman John S. Wisniewski |
Assemblyman John S. Wisniewski, Chairman of the New Jersey Assembly Transportation Committee presented a legislative update on the future of the State Transportation Trust Fund at the July 14 meeting of the NJTPA Board of Trustees.
Noting that New Jersey has a population of more than 8 million people and 36,000 miles of roadways, Assemblyman Wisniewski pointed to the significance of effective transportation planning and funding. “The economic vitality of the State of New Jersey – its success this year, next year, and in the decades to come – depends very much on what the NJTPA does and, more importantly, what we in Trenton do in terms of making the resources available for a Transportation Trust Fund that stands the test of time and is there for the long-haul,” the Assemblyman said.
Assemblyman Wisniewski indicated that the State Transportation Trust Fund in its current form expires as it marks its 20th anniversary in 2004. He recalled that when the Fund was first conceived, $250 million dollars a year was made available for transportation projects. Today, the Assemblyman emphasized, that figure would not even finance a trio of bridge projects now underway in Middlesex County. The Trust Fund currently finances about $1 billion worth of transportation projects in the state, but costs and the number of projects to be funded are consistently on the increase.
Assemblyman Wisniewski said that Governor James E. McGreevey has established a task force to look at the state’s transportation funding needs, and how a reauthorized Transportation Trust Fund could address the state’s needs now and well into the future.
“We need to have the input from everybody who is involved in transportation planning, about where the revenues will come from, what the needs are, and how we meet those needs and revenues,” Assemblyman Wisniewski said. “We’re looking for this to be a collaborative venture; one that does not have party labels or geography attached to it, but one that has New Jersey attached to it.”
Assemblyman Wisniewski highlighted the fact that New Jersey used to be a national model for having a dedicated Transportation Trust Fund and he said the goal is to get the state back at the forefront of transportation funding.
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The NJTPA Board approved recommendations for shaping national transportation policy to better meet the needs of northern New Jersey at its meeting on July 14.
The recommendations address needed changes in the federal Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), the nation's principal transportation law, which expires on September 30, 2003. Renewal of the law is likely to be delayed due to disagreements in Congress about financing and other provisions.
Among the recommendations approved by the NJTPA:
• Increase federal transportation funding and allocate this funding based on the distribution of population and infrastructure needs across the nation.
• Increase from 1 percent to 2 percent the share of federal transportation funding set aside for transportation planning
• Require mutual service standards for project monitoring, administration, and planning to be developed between states and Metropolitan Planning Organizations
• Place a greater emphasis on freight planning and provide expanded funding eligibility for freight projects.
• Insure that MPOs are consulted on plans and programs to protect infrastructure against acts of war or terrorism.
• Endorse recommendations of the Access to the Region’s Core (ARC) study for a new trans-Hudson rail tunnel.
• Require improved project information by states to MPOs.
• Require total project costs (as opposed to just phase-of-work costs) to be identified in capital plans.
• Extend the timeframe for updating 20-year transportation plans from three to five years.
• Continue the Congestion Mitigation Air Quality (CMAQ) program.
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The NJTPA Board of Trustees at its July 14 meeting added a series of 23 bicycle/pedestrian projects to the Fiscal Year 2004 Project Development Work Program (PDWP). The PDWP is a schedule of project planning and development work approved by the NJTPA each year. Resulting from more than two months of collaborative work by NJTPA Central Staff, the New Jersey Department of Transportation, and staff from the NJTPA’s subregions, the approved projects include:
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• Route 9W in Englewood Cliffs, Tenafly, and Alpine (Bergen County). A study to establish a designated bikeway from the south walkway of the George Washington Bridge to the New York State Line.
• Routes 1&9 Truck Route (Essex County) from Newark to Jersey City. Proposed pedestrian improvements to provide for continuity in the Liberty to Water Gap Trail.
• Route 440 in Jersey City at Routes 1&9 (Hudson County). Proposed safe crossing zones, sidewalk upgrades, and bicycle accommodations.
• Route 12 in various Hunterdon County municipalities between the Delaware River and Routes 31/202.
• Route 1 Utility Corridor Trail in Edison and Woodbridge (Middlesex County), a multi-purpose bicycle/pedestrian trail.
• Route 18 Trench Bikepath in New Brunswick (Middlesex County). Address numerous safety and security problems that deter bicyclists from using this facility.
• Belmar Borough, Neptune Township, and Bradley Beach (Monmouth County). Two separate bicycle improvements projects.
• Rockaway River Greenway in Dover and Rockaway Township (Morris County), a linear, riverside path for pedestrians and bicycles.
• Ocean County Bicycle Trail from Toms River to Barnegat, along the former CNJ Railroad line and across Cedar Creek in Forked River.
• Route 202/206 pedestrian overpass in Bridgewater and Somerset (Somerset County).
• Route 94 bicycle improvements in various municipalities within Sussex and Warren counties.
• Springfield Avenue pedestrian improvements in Summit (Union County), at NJ Transit overpass between Argyle Court and Park Avenue.
• Route 22 pedestrian improvements in Union and Springfield (Union County).
• High Point to Cape May Designated Bicycle Touring Route.This section of the first bike-touring route in the state will encompass Ocean, Monmouth, Middlesex, Somerset, Morris, and Sussex counties.
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The NJTPA Board of Trustees, at its July 14 meeting, authorized the NJTPA to help finance an important new study that would plan a Central Jersey Bus Rapid Transit System (BRT). BRT is a system that allows bus vehicles to operate on a right-of-way that is largely separated from other types of traffic.
With an eye toward addressing growing traffic congestion problems along a portion of the Route 1 corridor through Middlesex, Somerset, and Mercer counties, the nearly $700,000 study will be conducted under the auspices of the Central Jersey Transportation Forum, in collaboration with the NJTPA, NJ Transit, New Jersey Department of Transportation, and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission. NJ Transit will be the lead and sponsoring agency.
A previous study concluded that BRT plus feeder service from the surrounding communities would be the most viable solution for Route 1’s congestion problems between Lawrence Township, Mercer County and South Brunswick, Middlesex County. The new study will follow up on these findings and look at possible BRT extensions.
The Route 1 Corridor has as much employment as Newark. As population and employment increase in the corridor, traffic volumes could increase as much as 55 percent by the year 2020 according to recent studies.
The limited public transit available along this section of the Route 1 Corridor does not provide an adequate alternative to the automobile. “One of the primary findings of the Central Jersey Transportation Forum was that a balanced approach – utilizing transit, highway improvements, Smart Growth land use, and travel demand management is the only effective strategy to reduce traffic congestion and increase mobility,” said Union County Freeholder Dan Sullivan, Chairman of the NJTPA Planning & Economic Development Committee. The NJTPA will contribute $152,000 in funding for the one-year study.
BRT is used elsewhere in the country – including Hartford, CT and Albany, NY. It consists of an assortment of components including feeder services from outlying areas, park and ride lots, attractive stations, dedicated roadways on which the BRT can operate independently of traffic conditions on local streets, and priority roadway treatments permitting BRT vehicles to by-pass traffic delays.
BRT Systems also employ visually appealing, high-capacity rubber-tired vehicles that incorporate features such as multiple door boarding; Intelligent Transportation System technologies; fare collection systems that make it quicker and easier to pay, often before boarding; the latest safety equipment; and modern public address systems.
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The NJTPA recently formed the Interagency Data Resource Working Group, as an outgrowth of the NJTPA's recently completed five-year business plan. One of the strategies in the business plan is to improve the NJTPA’s technical resources in order to foster more effective regional transportation planning and better coordination with partner agencies, stakeholders, and the public. Formation of the Interagency Data Resource Working Group is one of the short-term actions dictated by the business plan.
The Working Group’s mission is four-fold: 1) to analyze the sufficiency of current data resources; 2) to determine data gaps and data needs; 3) to make recommendations concerning collection of new data; and 4) to create protocols for the sharing of data among regional users.
The Working Group’s first meeting on June 23 included representatives from six NJTPA subregions, NJ Transit, NJDOT, and the Port Authority. The meeting focused on the Working Group’s mission and initiated ongoing efforts to address data issues.
The Group also held an open discussion of data gaps and needs in the NJTPA region. Some of the issues discussed included: the need to look outside the region for relevant economic and other data from neighboring counties and states; compiling a directory of contact persons for data at partner agencies; pooling resources for data purchase or collection; and assisting in training to help end-users use data correctly.
The Working Group’s next meeting will feature a discussion of specific short-term and long-term issues to be considered, in addition to coordination with similar data groups in the state and region. The Group also will discuss which other agencies and organizations should be invited to participate and how often to meet. For more information on the Working Group or how to participate, contact Amy Glassman at 973-639-8419.
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Two new members recently joined the NJTPA Board of Trustees. Glenn R. Langberg (pictured) is the Board’s new Citizens’ Representative. Mr. Langberg will serve on the NJTPA’s Planning & Economic Development Committee. Mr. Langberg is the Chief Executive Officer of Strauss Discount Auto.
Paul T. Fader has been named the Governor’s Representative to the NJTPA Board. Mr. Fader, who is Chief of the Governor’s Authorities Unit, will serve on the NJTPA’s Project Prioritization Committee. Mr. Fader was elected Mayor of Englewood, Bergen County in 1997 and is a law partner at Connell Foley LLP.
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Theodore J. Narozanick (right), NJTPA Board of Trustees Chairman, recently met with U.S. Rep. Don Young, Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, at a briefing attended by many New Jersey officials. Rep. Young (R-Alaska) leads the effort to reauthorize the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21), the nation’s primary transportation funding legislation. The Congressman assured Freeholder Narozanick that he is aware of the transportation challenges facing the NJTPA region. Rep. Young spoke of his desire to see ferry service expanded and noted that the region’s waterways have vast capacity to support passenger travel and goods movement, unlike the roadways. |
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North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority, Inc.
One Newark Center, 17th Floor. Newark, NJ 07102
(973) 639-8400; Fax 639-1953
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