NJDOT Has The Money – It’s Time To Use It To Save Lives

NJDOT has money available for walking and biking projects, but small towns and municipalities find it very difficult to access the funds. NJDOT claims that there are not many projects in the pipeline — NOT TRUE.

“New Jersey has the second-highest amount of uncommitted federal transportation dollars in the nation, and it consistently ranks among the worst when it comes to spending a specific type of transportation funds — Transportation Alternatives, which is intended to fund trails, walking, and biking projects. ”

As of last week in NJ, at least 165 people have been killed in 2019 while walking or bicycling. In 2018, New Jersey State Police reported that bicyclists and pedestrians comprised 34% of the state’s crash fatalities.

NJDOT has a responsibility to make the funds available for biking and walking projects in cities like Asbury Park.

Dozens are killed each year walking and biking in N.J. We have the cash to make roads safer. | Opinion

By Star-Ledger Guest Columnist

Sonia Szczesna and Liz Sewell

As of Dec. 9, 2019, at least 165 people have been killed this year while walking or bicycling on New Jersey’s roads. Meanwhile, New Jersey has millions in federal transportation funds it can spend, Sonia Szczesna and Liz Sewell say.

New Jersey has the second-highest amount of uncommitted federal transportation dollars in the nation, and it consistently ranks among the worst when it comes to spending a specific type of transportation funds — Transportation Alternatives, which is intended to fund trails, walking, and biking projects.

At the same time New Jersey has a backlog of transportation dollars to spend, it has an enormous bicycle and pedestrian safety problem. As of Dec. 9, 2019, at least 165 people have been killed this year while walking or bicycling on New Jersey’s roads. In 2018, New Jersey State Police reported that bicyclists and pedestrians comprised 34% of the state’s crash fatalities — the second deadliest year for walkers and bikers on record. The deadliest year was in 2017.

Do you NEED an SUV?

Ads for SUVs are so attractive. Families loading camping gear, young couples off-roading in the snow, kids piling out to soccer practice … and in all of the ads there’s NO traffic anywhere. The automotive industry is banking on sales of big vehicles for the bigger profit margin. GAs is relatively cheap, Americans are eagerly buying into the hype, and killing more people walking, on scooters, and on bikes in greater numbers every day. Young suburban moms are driving these huge vehicles with one or two kids (or alone) so we don’t want to blame men entirely, but hey guys. Honestly do you need a truck to make a statement?

DOT: Men in Big SUVs Are a Menace to Society

By Gersh Kuntzman Dec 13, 2019

“We have met the enemy and it is men.”

“The popularity of SUVs and light trucks are contributing to the increase in roadway fatalities in New York City and nationally,” DOT Commissioner Polly Trottenberg. “If you’re behind the wheel of one of those vehicles … you need to take extra caution. it has a lot more weight…poor visibility, it takes you longer to brake and it is harder to see around turns. Drivers of those vehicles need drive very carefully to compensate.”

Are you influenced by the ad campaigns for an SUV? Red about it:

https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2019/12/13/dot-men-in-big-suvs-are-a-menace-to-society/

December 4, 2019December 2, 2019

Cars: An Addiction Like Any Other

Cities that prioritize parking and roads for automotive traffic have bought into the hype. It’s the influence of the addiction, and it’s especially hard to break an addiction when the addicts don’t know, or are unwilling to admit that they’re addicted.

The 3 leading causes of death in the US, guns, opioids, and car crash fatalities. The industries are profiting, and they’re killing us in almost equal numbers by keeping us addicted.

The auto and oil and gas industries cleverly, and creatively keep us addicted to cars, even though they’re literally killing us: 2018 was the third consecutive year of at least 40,000 motor vehicle deaths.

Pharma succeeded in getting and keeping people addicted to opiods, which were involved in 47,600 overdose deaths in 2017, just slightly higher than car related deaths, and now drug companies are profiting from the drugs that treat opioid addiction.

Americans are addicted to their guns too, and that’s the way the industry likes it, even though 39,773 people died from gun-related injuries in the U.S., according to the CDC. just slightly less than deaths by car.

One way that the media has bought into the hype is putting the onus for safety on people riding bikes and scooters, which is focusing entirely on the wrong problem. #toomanycars #slowthecars

Asbury Park Complete Streets Coalition works to address the health, economic, and equity of transportation options in our city.

The truly most dangerous activity :
“…separates white from black, rich from poor, healthy from sick…when you cram yourself into a little steel box. The structure is designed to keep you emotionally and financially enslaved to your car…”

THE MOST DANGEROUS ACTIVITY

Another reason it’s popular to talk about the dangers of cycling is that talking about the dangers of cycling discourages people from cycling. American society doesn’t want YOU on a bike. If YOU start riding, you will drive less. If you drive less, you’ll contribute less to the structure we live in, which is built around driving.

Read this blog post by Seth Davidson, a long-time bicycle rider, advocate, and cycling lawyer. He’s often snarkily humorous, but this time he’s deadly serious:

The most dangerous activity

December 3, 2019December 2, 2019

Journalists Warn Scooter Danger But Cars Are The Real Problem

Scooters, (and micro-mobility in general) have become a legitimate part of plans for many cities all over the world to fulfill objectives to reduce car-dependency, thereby mitigating pollution, and saving lives due to vehicular crashes.

Paul Steely White, after 14 years leading Transportation Alternatives, is now taking on a new role as director of safety policy and advocacy at Bird, an electric scooter rental company. He has been New York City’s most vocal champions of pedestrians, cyclists and public transit.

White tweeted: “This is the 2nd time in 2 weeks that someone who should have known better has grossly misreported the UCLA scooter study. “50x more injuries” is not the same as 50 more injuries (vs. bikes).”

We tweeted in reply: “This kind of reporting is obviously focusing on the wrong issue. Can’t help wondering whether they’re funded by the automotive industry.”

Journalists have taken up the issue of scooter dangers. So let’s play a game. Read this article (or any article about the dangers of scooters, where the writer is cautioning about the numbers of injuries, helmet use, etc. and substitute the word “car” for “scooter.” Let’s keep this number top of mind: 40,000 people were killed last year in vehicular crashes.

E-SCOOTERS PRESENT A GROWING PUBLIC-HEALTH CHALLENGE

BY DR. JONATHAN FIELDING, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR

This movement may be good for clearing the air, easing automobile congestion and building valuation (Bird and Lime are worth about $2B each), but municipalities, manufacturers and sharing companies need to address pressing safety, health and environmental problems already taking root.

That need becomes urgent as e-scooter popularity skyrockets. In 2018, shared e-scooter and bicycle trips in the U.S. more than doubled over 2017’s baseline to reach 84 million; rentable e- scooters alone accounted for more than 38.5 million trips.

Growing injuries match the growing popularity. Many emergency rooms have reported leaps in e-scooter injuries, causing several municipalities to ban their use. There’s an increased acknowledgement that safety concerns present a major barrier to mass adoption, as companies face fresh regulatory pushback and litigation risk amid reports of vehicle malfunctions and deaths.

Read about it:

https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/472401-e-scooters-present-a-growing-public-health-challenge

November 28, 2019November 27, 2019

On The Road This Thanksgiving?

Asbury Park Complete Streets Coalition wishes everyone a safe and happy Thanksgiving, and we hope your traffic woes are at a minimum in this holiday season!

We’re at critical mass with #toomanycars. Buses, trains, electric ride sharing, bikes, and even scooters will need to become more realistic options for day-to-day travel, whether we’re going home from work or home for the holidays. Thanksgiving is a good time to start trying to promote that message.

The Lessons of Holiday Traffic Congestion

ANDREW SMALL

The annual holiday gridlock reveals the failure of the American imagination when it comes to other transportation choices.

It’s Turkey Time in America, and you know the deal: Prepare for traffic hell.More than 55 million Americans will travel more than 50 miles away from home for the Thanksgiving holiday, AAA predicts. This figure has been steadily rising; it is, once again, the highest since 2005. About 1.5 million people will be taking trains, buses, and various forms of public transportation to their destinations. Another 4.45 million Americans will fly to friends and family. The rest are driving. As we motor from suburb to suburb, back to little hometowns and over to new retirement communities, Thanksgiving exposes America’s utter dependence on automobility like no other holiday.

Automobiles drive in heavy traffic along the Long Island Expressway in the Queens borough of New York, U.S., November 20, 2018. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton – RC189962B510

Read about it~

https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2019/11/thanksgiving-traffic-congestion-cars-flights-transit-data/602650/

November 27, 2019November 25, 2019

Can We Break Up With Our Cars?

The automotive industry has co-opted our language, and our brains.

Cities all over the world are becoming aware of the damage of cars on human health and the environment, and we’re designing infrastructure to stem the horrific numbers of car crash deaths. Asbury Park is on it’s way to becoming a city where residents and visitors will be able to get around without cars. Our lives literally depend upon it.

This is a global issue.

Nordic countries are years ahead of the US. We have serious work to do, and it starts with advocacy for a people-centered city. We must all commit to less driving, and we must insist on infrastructure for bikes and walking, plus alternative transportation, mass transit, and micro mobility. The answer isn’t subsidizing low emission or electric cars (even though electric vehicles create less emissions, fossil fuels are required to power EV ), or ride share, or promoting autonomous vehicles. The answer is to globally reduce or eliminate vehicle dependency. #toomanycars

Cities Worldwide Are Re-imagining Their Relationship With Cars

By Somini Sengupta and Nadja Popovich | Illustrations by Tim Peacock

Nov. 14, 2019

November 26, 2019November 25, 2019

Jimmy Fallon Video: David Byrne’s Main Mode Of Transportation

Last week cyclist and musician David Byrne was on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” . He rode onto the stage on a bike, and said that he rides his bike as his “main mode of transportation.” When Fallon appeared confused about why anyone would do that, Byrne’s tone clarified that it’s not crazy to want to bicycle in an American city – in fact, it’s crazy that the entire system has been designed to make it easier to drive a car. The problem is that we’ve all been gaslighted by auto makers and anti-transit politicians to see car-choked streets as “normal.” The segment is worth watching.

November 18, 2019

World Day Of Remembrance: To Honor The Victims Of Traffic Violence

On World Day of Remembrance, we honor the victims of traffic violence. The third Sunday in November is about remembrance, but EVERY day is about action: we need to prioritize #safety over #speed & design our streets to protect the people most vulnerable to crashes.

More than 1.35 million people die on the road each year globally.

Road traffic injuries

Key facts

Approximately 1.35 million people die each year as a result of road traffic crashes.
The2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development has set an ambitious target of halving the global number of deaths and injuries from road traffic crashes by 2020.
Road traffic crashes cost most countries 3% of their gross domestic product.
More than half of all road traffic deaths are among vulnerable road users: pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists.
93% of the world’s fatalities on the roads occur in low- and middle-income countries, even though these countries have approximately 60% of the world’s vehicles.
Road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5-29 years.

Creating A Liveable City – Nordic Countries Do It – Can WE?

In Asbury Park we have heard, “Asbury Park is unique” and, “we’re not (fill in name of any liveable, walkable, bikeable city), and “where will the delivery trucks park?”, with the implication that motor vehicles rule, and that walking and biking infrastructure won’t work here. Our Transportation Manager, Mike Manzella recently returned from a visit to Oslo, and other people-centered cities and we can’t wait to learn all about it!

In this BBC The Compass Podcast you can substitute Asbury Park for Oslo. You’ll hear how that city is also expanding, and making a commitment to “reducing carbon use and emissions”, working to “avoid urban pitfalls that may lead to segregation and inequality. Some say it might be impossible. Asbury Park is among cities all over the globe working to enable people to be less car-dependent, and to prioritize people in urban planning.

In the article below, you will read that Nordic planners have “prioritised liveability, sustainability, mobility and citizens’ empowerment”, and now there’s an international masters program to teach planners all over the world how to do the same. We have serious work to do in the US.

Oslo is “doing a a rigorous investigation into the city’s plans to grow quickly, but intelligently. They scrutinise the policies aimed at reducing fossil fuel emissions and creating a zero-carbon infrastructure, they look at the plans for preventing segregated neighbourhoods… ” Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Let’s get to work.

By Maddy Savage 12th November 2019

Fuelled by rising international interest in why the Nordic countries are doing so well, three of the region’s top universities recently joined forces to launch the world’s first international master’s programme specialising in Nordic urban planning.

“In the Nordics, there has long been an emphasis on people in urban life, and putting them at the centre,” explains David Pinder, a professor of urban studies at Roskilde University in Denmark. Planners have prioritised liveability, sustainability, mobility and citizens’ empowerment – ideals manifest in green parks, well-lit public spaces, strong transport networks and accessible local facilities for children and the elderly.”

Read about it~

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20191112-what-the-nordic-nations-can-teach-us-about-liveable-cities

November 12, 2019November 10, 2019

Auto Industry Group: Need For Lower Carbon Footprint

Even auto industry groups admit that we’re on a collision course with global environmental impact of emissions. Green Car Reports predicts that almost double the number of cars will be on roads by 2035. “And that would require a major proportion of the global fleet to use some other form of propulsion with a far, far lower well-to-wheels carbon footprint.” Advocates for the environment know that this is highly unlikely, and that the only solution is driving less and fewer cars on the road. This will require rethinking cities – creating places for people, less car dependency, better micro-mobility options, plus more and better infrastructure for biking and walking.

Cutting carbon: 80 percent needed

A 2.5-billion vehicle “global car parc” would mean that to keep carbon emissions level with today’s total, average fleet fuel efficiency would have to double.

But scientists suggest that it will be necessary to cut average carbon emissions 80 percent if we wish to stabilize the impact of climate change.

Traffic in China

Read about it in Green Car Reports:

https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1093560_1-2-billion-vehicles-on-worlds-roads-now-2-billion-by-2035-report

Author: APCSC