I couldn't tell, but there were two trucks out there working on them...I say we paint them argyle just to piss everyone off!

Please don't tell be they painted them yellow.

Saw them working on the stop lights today...fingers crossed that they go on soon!

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I think that was based solely on the percentage of people who walked to work. It's hard for me to imagine the city was ever actually friendly to pedestrians given urban planning nightmares like putting a shopping mall and its parking garage between entire neighborhoods and crucial mass transit stations.

I can't imagine anywhere else where there would be a school on a busy street leading to and from a major traffic bottleneck with a pedestrian entrance to a shopping mall directly across that street, also used by commuters to access a major mass transit station, and no stoplight at the crossing. It's actually mind-boggling.

Hey they don't care about safety. And I wouldn't even worry about the light if people in cars knew how to obey the rules of the road. Light or not that is a CROSSWALK and do you know what you must do in a car when you see a crosswalk and a pedestrian you must STOP because the pedestrian has the right of way, not speed up, no flick me off or honk your horn but STOP. Jersey City needs to enforce this at every crosswalk in town because it is extremely dangerous for pedestrians. Only took Somerville a couple of months with signs posted in the middle of every pedestrian crossing and enough tickets written that people there do it out of habit now. This city was written up 5 years ago in the Wall Street journal as being one of the most pedestrian friendly cities in the COUNTRY. It surely would not be ranked that now.

i should "write" drunk.

I right him a someone heated email, and he took the time to write me back. Here's what I gots...


-----------

Weinish,

As a council person I have little control over the Traffic Division. This Division is directly under the office of the Mayor who runs the daily operations of the City. The Council is the legislative branch. That being said, I do have the ability to speak up and voice the concerns of my constituents. I hope to draw as much light to this situation as possible as it needs to be resolved with expediency. I can honestly say that I have been badgering the City (traffic division) every week for the past year and a half about this and other traffic lights.

I am not sure which traffic light you are specifically speaking about, Grand and Barrow? There are two along Grand that have been just sitting for a long time. These are both the responsibility of the developer at Liberty Harbor North per their development agreement. Even so I believe the traffic division should be on top of this every day. I am not sure if you receive my quarterly newsletter email, but you can follow the traffic light and street lighting progress through the past several years.

Where we are at now is sad. The developer has said that they cannot finish the light and has now told the City that they would pay them to complete the job. I ask for a report on this light and all of the other traffic lights in the ward on a weekly basis. You are absolutely correct in this being an avoidable hazard. It does not matter where you live in the city, everyone should be more like you and have a deep concern for everyone's safety.

I would strongly encourage you to write an equally strong email to the Mayor's office and call and email the Mayor's Action Bureau. I am glad you reached out to me and I will continue to push, but these are the offices that have the direct responsibility for the divisions under their care, such as traffic and engineering. The more people to call, the more likely to be heard and acted upon. I realize that you shouldn't have to even reach out because to me this is a no brainer and the City should follow through to completion automatically. However, this is a group effort and I am deeply encouraged that you cared enough to reach out to me. This is very important. Thank you.

Steve




Steven M. Fulop
Jersey City Councilman
Ward "E"
280 Grove Street
Jersey City, NJ 07302

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Maybe JCList should take up a collection in an envelop stuffed with cash. What's the going rate? $5,000?

No I couldn't sense the sarcasm. The Boys & Girls club is not all that far away and doesn't seem all that far fetched for you to say. That being said, it's a ridiculous thing being that there are lights installed with Hefty bags over them. Someone needs to get paid off to flip a switch I'm guessing.

Yes, it was clear as the day what you wrote in your original message and your follow up reply quoting such words, vis a vis, << not some "employee" of "John D'Sousa" >>. Hey man, I empathize with you over the traffic light isssue. Really and sincerely. Venting here only helps so much. Still the person who will get it done is Joao D'Souza. The more people who repeatedly follow up with him, the better. He is the man responsible. It took Councilman Fulop several follow up requests, over the course of years, to get the traffic lights on Warren St. Months later after they're finally installed, but still not turned on. (And yes, fwiw, they are yellow). Who else (besides HobRef) has contacted the Director at least once?

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Read my post again. I said I contacted the office. Nowhere did I ever say I contacted/spoke to D'Sousa personally. Oh and forgive me for a first name spelling error. You owe me a beer.

Joao D'Souza is the man responsible (see job description). Not the developer.

Call his # and ask to speak to him specifically, reminding him of his job description:

"The Division of Traffic and Transportation Maintenance provides for the maintenance of City traffic signals and street lighting systems and maximizes safety, circulation, and efficiency of City streets."

then you can write how you "personally contacted" Joao D'Souza and not some "employee" of "John D'Sousa".

Designknob, could you not sense the sarcasm? Take note of the eye roll.

The racing cars and some people waking out of LH and totally disregarding/not wanting to get to the crosswalk is eventually going to lead to something unfortunate and possibly tragic.

I have personally contacted John D'Sousa's office MONTHS ago and was told by an employee that the developer needs to "take care of some issues" before the light is activated, so now I pester property management regarding this issue. Is that the response you wanted to hear, sweety? Your snarky responses are comical. Get some new material, douche.

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Possibly the most asinine response yet.

If you care enough to write here, you should be more than motivated to call the person responsible for turning on the light. That will be allot more productive and you'll feel better, too. Here is the person and his contact details.

From http://www.cityofjerseycity.com/ .....

Joao D'Souza, Director
Division of Traffic and Transportation Maintenance
Public Works Complex, 575 Route 440
Jersey City, NJ 07305
Tel: (201) 547-4471
Fax: (201) 547-4703

Description
The Division of Traffic and Transportation Maintenance provides for the maintenance of City traffic signals and street lighting systems and maximizes safety, circulation, and efficiency of City streets. The Division maintains and analyzes traffic collision records, speed surveys, traffic counts and reviews traffic control plans. Division staff is also responsible for reviewing, analyzing, and reporting on traffic issues and concerns.

This Division is also responsible for street/lane closings, handicapped parking permits, dumpster permits, installing and replacing street signs and post, and road markings such as crosswalks, 25 MPH, stop sign marking, double yellow and speed bumps.

Whatever it is. I was commenting on the post re people standing in the middle of Grand.

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it was two cars.

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Contact Grand Street Property Management (the non-English speaking goons that manage Liberty Harbor). The response they always give me is "we are working on getting the light turned on", and the city seems to care less about whether or not it's activated.

Some LH residents are just too lazy to walk it allllllll the way down to the Boys and Girls Club and cross there. We all know that is too far to walk for any able bodied person.

I just don't understand why someone doesn't just turn the thing on and then sort out the legal issues later.

Smashing the light with a beat up car is perfect. You could then get up to 4500 towards a new car in this cash for clunker gig the govt is doing... Anyone with a low mileage clunker willing to help out?!

Dear Asshole Who Won't Fix the Light,


I just witnessed a near fatal accident at Tidewater and Grand, as I as jogging past.


Fix the effing light, you moron. Paint it yourself. People are going to die, especially now that there's a bar back there.

See - we should have an updated list of prices for government services. The building department was very conscientious about this for years - I believe they had a graduated scale that accounted for both square footage as well as location when they were paid off for permits. Activating a traffic light - seems like that should be a $500-type "contribution."

Since the mayor and the council president have told us that nothing is wrong and we shouldn't dwell on these trivial matters of the recent past, I'm just awaiting my new instructions for the cost of business as usual.

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I drive through downtown at least once a day, and people darting out from the middle of the block and between cars and against lights is a constant concern as a driver. I am one of those funny drivers who actually stops when I see someone step into the crosswalk, but even I have had close calls with pedestrians who refuse to obey walk/don't walk signs, traffic signals and common sense. There is a large percentage of stupid drivers, especially the idiot who swung around me at Montgomery and Warren at about 40 mphs when I stopped to let someone in the crosswalk go last week, but there a also a large number of stupid walkers who need to realize that getting hit with a 2000 lb metal box going 25 hurts..a lot. One thing to remember if you insist on crossing against a light, when a car is making a legal right on red, the driver is looking to his left to make sure it is safe to go, so when you cross against the light you are putting yourself in his path as he starts to accelerate, when he is making a right with the light he is, or should be, looking to his right for pedestrians.

In the meantime, some of the LHN residents need to cross the street with a bit more caution, especially during morning rush hour.

I have seen folks darting across the street, mid-block, ignoring the crosswalk, some of them waiting in the middle of the street till it's clear.

These are adults in suits with briefcases (and backpacks, ugh) who should know better.

Someone is going to get hurt.

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My question then would be, why is the traffic light at the intersection of Kennedy Blvd and Sip Ave in a black housing? Perhaps they should shut that on off until they replace it with a yellow housing and see how it works out.

Sounds like something that could be fixed with a three dollar can of spray paint.

the obvious solution here is for someone to drive into the traffic light and knock it down. they'll be forced to put it back up, and maybe they'll change it to the right color one and turn it on. so whos got a large, old car they wouldnt mind crashing?

Overwhelmingly it has been confirmed, by reliable sources, that the housing color is not acceptable. City Hall identified Joe D'Sousa as the responsible individual representing the JC traffic and engineering department. Please direct any future litigation conversations toward Mayor Healy's office.

I'm waiting for the first drunk tool bag stumbling out from ZH to get mowed down.

Come to think of it, it seems as if the LH developer caters to the bar patrons, so I don't know why the light on Grand isn't turned on.

Yeah, it's just a matter of time before a pedestrian gets mowed down by a driver who [is speeding / is drunk / is driving at night with lights off].

I emailed Fulop about this; hopefully if there's enough of an outcry something will get done. Keeping my fingers crossed.