FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 22, 2025Contact: Melissa Hayes, NJTPA Senior Director of Communications
& External Affairs
mhayes@njtpa.org or (972) 639-8438
North
Jersey Transportation Planning Authority Seeking Public Input on the Future of
Transportation
How do you see yourself getting around in the future?
Would you consider driving an electric vehicle or riding in a self-driving car
or shuttle? Are there regional transportation projects that you want
prioritized for funding?
These are some of the questions the public will be asked
as Monmouth County works with the North Jersey Transportation Planning
Authority (NJTPA) on the region’s next long-range
transportation plan, Connecting Communities. The plan will detail new
programs and recommend policies and transportation investments for the next 25
years, including projects in Monmouth County.
The NJTPA region includes 13 counties in northern and
central New Jersey and is home to 7 million people, with the population
expected to hit 7.8 million in 2050. The NJTPA works with local partners and
state agencies to provide more than $3 billion in transportation investments
annually. In order for the region to be eligible to receive federal
transportation funds for programs and projects, the NJTPA must adopt a
long-range transportation plan every four years.
“Working with the NJTPA, Monmouth County has secured hundreds
of millions of dollars to replace bridges in poor condition, construct safety
improvements on our roads, and conduct planning work to improve mobility and identify
barriers to travel,” said Monmouth County Commissioner Thomas A. Arnone, who
represents the county on the NJTPA Board of Trustees. “I encourage our
residents to share their ideas and transportation needs with the NJTPA so we
can continue this great work and develop a long-range plan for the region that
meets the needs of our communities.”
The NJTPA has approved funding for several projects in Monmouth
County, including $107.5 million for construction of a new Rumson-Sea Bright
Bridge, which will be completed this year. The NJTPA has also approved funding
for the replacement of the Old-Bridge Matawan Road Bridge in Matawan Borough
and Aberdeen Township and the Corlies Avenue Bridge in the Borough of
Allenhurst and Township of Ocean. Those
projects are in the local preliminary engineering phase. In addition, through
the NJTPA, Monmouth County is exploring options to address congestion and
reduce crashes along the County Route 3 corridor from Devon Drive to Kensington
Drive in Manalapan Township. And, last year the county completed the Monmouth
PATHS: Access for All planning study, funded by the NJTPA, that identified
and developed measures to mitigate barriers to mobility of all types including
improving public awareness of travel options, infrastructure improvements, and
policy changes.
Public input plays a critical role in the plan. The
feedback the NJTPA gathers through an online survey and events will be
considered and incorporated into the plan, which the NJTPA Board of Trustees is
expected to adopt in September. Everyone who lives in the NJTPA region is
encouraged to participate.
The survey is available in six languages – English,
Spanish, Portuguese, Hindi, Chinese and Korean. Virtual public outreach will
begin later this month with a Let’s Talk Transportation event on January 28 at
11:30 a.m. focused on creating a safe biking and walking transportation
network.
The NJTPA will also be conducting pop-up outreach at
events throughout the region this spring. To share your ideas, interests, and
concerns about the future of transportation in northern and central New Jersey,
please take the NJTPA’s brief survey and sign up for virtual events at the Connecting
Communities website: njtpa.org/connecting.
The NJTPA is the
metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for 13 northern New Jersey counties.
Under federal legislation, MPOs provide a forum where local officials, public
transportation providers and state agency representatives can come together and
cooperatively plan to meet the region’s current and future transportation
needs. It establishes the region’s eligibility to receive federal tax dollars
for transportation projects.
The NJTPA Board
consists of one local elected official from each of the 13 counties in the
region (Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean,
Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren), and the cities of Newark and
Jersey City. The Board also includes a Governor’s Representative, the
Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Transportation, the Executive
Director of NJ Transit, the Deputy Executive Director of the Port Authority of
New York and New Jersey, and a Citizen’s Representative appointed by the
Governor.
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