On Thursday at Washington County Park in Jersey City, Craig Guy, soon to become Hudson County’s Executive (he’s running unopposed in November), unveiled the 24-member, Vision Zero Task Force which will implement plans and projects to ultimately make the county’e roads safer for everyone. The aim is to achieve no driver, pedestrian, cyclist or jogger fatalities as soon as possible.
Jersey City, under the leadership of Mayor Steven Fulop, last year saw no such fatalities after its Vision Zero initiative was put into place. Hoboken has had similar success. That’s the ultimate goal for the entire county.
Guy will serve as Chairman of the new Task Force, which will have representation from each municipality in Hudson County, as well as state, county and law enforcement representatives on the panel. Every Mayor in Hudson County is in support of the County Vision Zero initiative.
A $20-million, state roads grant will be used to carry out Vision Zero projects across the county. A specific target will be JF Kennedy Boulevard, which has seen its share of fatalities in recent years.
Guy said another goal is to implement a bike lane from Hoboken, along Paterson Plank Road, through the eastern edge of Jersey City into Union City along Manhattan Avenue. The task force will come up with a specific plan on how to achieve this goal.
There are many other areas through Hudson County which will be studied to determine the best ways to make those areas safer.
