Bicycle Safety At the Forefront in New Jersey

The idea is to promote safety along designated Safe Corridor highway segments and to promote safety for bicyclists.  The Christie Administration has announced the award of $3 million in grants to 59 municipalities to do just that.

A total of 53 municipalities will share $2 million in FY 12 Safe Corridors grants and six municipalities will share $1 million in FY 12 bike-way grants.  The grants are administered by the New Jersey Department of Transportation's Division of Local Aid and Economic Development.

"Safety is the New Jersey Department of Transportation's top priority and these grants support safety through local enforcement and capital improvement projects," said NJDOT Commissioner James Simpson.  "The funding helps local governments achieve their objectives without burdening local property taxpayers."

The Safe Corridor grant program started in 2003 and provides resources for 14 ten-mile segments of highways that have a history of high crash rates.  Grants are supported by fines which are doubled in the Safe Corridors for moving violations.

Segments of Route 1, Route 9, Route 22, Route 40, Route 46, Route 47, Route 73 and Route 206 are receiving FY 12 funding.  Grants can be used to purchase enforcement equipment including police vehicles, radar equipment, computer hardware and software and salaries.

The Local Aid Bike-way program supports construction of bike paths in parks and other settings, as well as bike lanes along roadways.