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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
 
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You don't often see it during the day, it's at night when the bridge and tunnel crowd is in town and no one has ever told them it's illegal. Even a bozo from the burbs knows there must be SOME speed limit, but if you've never been anywhere that there's no right on red, how would you know? Really? They have a "welcome to NYC" sign at the tunnel, why not a "no right on red in NYC" sign?
Posted on: 2011/3/3 22:25
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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And people making rights on red in Manhattan is unusual - sure it happens, but if you drove around all day for a week I doubt you'd see one a day.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 21:58
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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The city doesn't post "no right on red signs" for the same reason it doesn't post speed limit signs all over Manhattan. It is a blanket rule where only the exceptions are posted.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 21:33
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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Really, no right on red in NYC?  I've seen plenty of it, and I blame the city for not bothering to post signs at the major highways, bridges & tunnels. Who would know if no one ever tell them except the rare cop writing the ticket?
Posted on: 2011/3/3 21:16
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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I urge any of you that have complaints about Columbus Drive or other areas with unsafe pedestrian access to write to your councilman. Writing on the internet doesn't do much unless you also voice your concerns to the city council.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 18:49
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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NYC is much easier for pedestrians. There are a lot more pedestrians and the drivers cannot turn on red.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 18:30
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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There are 250 miles of ?mean? streets in ALL of Jersey City!!! Maybe you DTJC suburb transplants need to pick up the book that Ziggy is reading?. Ziggy ?or just ask a JC born 10 year old how to cross a street. (but don?t buy any dollar candy bars from them, it?s a scam?you knew that right?)  How do you people survive on your trips to NYC??? 
Posted on: 2011/3/3 17:44
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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When did left turn on red become acceptable?
Posted on: 2011/3/3 17:19
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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Gentrification definitely disrupts machine politics. Just look at the disaster of Hoboken's government, or the rise of independent voices like Fulop. This is a prime reason given often as to why Union City has never pushed to redevelop-- it would disrupt the Stack machine. However, fortunately for the machine politics in Jersey City, downtowners don't vote in high numbers and is still a minority in the city's voting block even if we did turnout. The anti-pedestrianism I don't think is the product of actively preventing gentrification but more the product of several factors. One, a push by big developers, especially Goldman Sachs, to make the city more car friendly for getting residents and workers to the waterfront. Two, the city's planners and engineers not actually being current with modern urban design and planning. And three, an attitude of simply not valuing pedestrian friendly behavior and development.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 16:32
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Re: Only in Jersey City STOP signs are for decoration
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Home away from home
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Same exact thing just happened to me at Marin and Grand coming back from the PATH station. On the way there (around 7:30) a van going north on Marin (coming from behind me) sped up to make the left on Wayne in front of me, as I was literally halfway across the street and in the crosswalk. It would be fun to carry a couple of eggs in my coat pocket for instances such as these.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 16:11
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Re: Only in Jersey City STOP signs are for decoration
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Home away from home
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Now you're talking about one of the 3rd rails, an untouchable issue since it affects seniors the most, who vote the most. I just spend a week in S Florida and even if you just tested their eyesight you'd take half the drivers off the road. Around here people can see, and even mostly control their vehicles, but they have no idea what the laws and rules are. Between the people who ignore the stopsigns and people who stop at EVERY corner or have no idea when it's THEIR right of way, every drive makes me what to tear my hair out.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 16:00
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Re: Only in Jersey City STOP signs are for decoration
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Home away from home
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it's pretty stupid that you never ever have to re-take a test for driver's license. Pass it once when you're 17 and then you're set for life.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 15:14
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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2009/3/19 15:20 Last Login : 2020/6/2 11:06 From Scenic McGinley Square
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I agree with snowflake20 there a a lot of very inattentive oblivious drivers in JC. As a daily driver and a person who spends a lot of time riding a bike around JC I have seen it from both sides. One thing i don't understand though is the attitude of pedestrians that they have more rights to the streets then a driver does. I understand the right of way laws, and I always stop for pedestrians in cross walks, but what makes it ok for people to just walk off the curb in the middle of a block on Columbus when they could have easily gone to a cross walk. Especially when they do it with small kids or a stroller.
Posted on: 2011/3/3 12:01
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Only in Jersey City STOP signs are for decoration
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Quite a regular
 
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Walking home this evening up Erie St as I crossed 4th street, a car approached. I was already in the crosswalk. This b***h in her car literally started to swerve to go around me to go through the intersection. She didn't even attempt to stop as she is supposed to. I pointed to the STOP sign. And then she starts to yell at me from inside her car. As if she even has an argument. WTF does it take to get a drivers license in NJ? DO they dispense them from gum-ball machines for a quarter?! Are STOP signs in JC literally just for decoration?!!!
Posted on: 2011/3/3 3:08
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Just can't stay away
 
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Well only including downtown and saying that it's walkability is bad doesn't make it so. the rest of the city is pretty walkable, it's simply people on both parties (drivers & pedestrians) not using common sense. But i do agree that the city's planning board are idiots. Columbus and Grand should have never been re-sized to the extent they are now. Maybe for Grand they can add dividers like the one on Washington blvd in Newport while Columbus' sidewalks should be made larger. The rest of the city doesn't have the same issues as downtown in terms of vehicular safety. I live in the heights and due to the narrow streets up here not many cars are speeding, except for the NJT buses on summit...must admit they fly down pretty fast for a narrow street.
This is a very frustrating situation for the city, so i surely hope that once the Bayfront development gets underway the plannign board doesn't take the downtown approach. The Bayfront will take massive amount of public input. Granted Bayfront will be smaller than whole downtown, but i don't think that will stop them.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 22:56
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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Or stabbed. Or shot.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 21:51
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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That walkability report just takes into account how many amenities are within walking distance. That is irrelevant if you get run over on Grand or Columbus while walking to a store during rush hour.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 21:47
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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T-bird, size is a big factor with regard to walkability. Remember, Hudson County as a whole is VERY walkable.
My point is - what are we comparing JC to? If Manhattan, then yes, JC is less walkable than Manhattan. But when comparing with the rest of the United States, JC's walkability ranks extremely high. Tons of people live here without a car. Maybe about half, at least in the downtown neighborhoods. How does that compare to say, Cleveland? You're from the Midwest, right?
Posted on: 2011/3/1 21:40
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Quite a regular
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I don't mind the density of JC traffic. Afterall, we live in a big city.
Like Tommy, I do mind the apparent disregard for pedestrians when planning redevelopment of our neighborhoods and streets. Grand Street is wide and accommodates lots of cars and that's fine. Grand Street in should also have a bajillion speed bumps to slow the traffic down. Christopher Columbus, however, is like the unfortunate lovechild of a pigpath and a superhighway. I grew up driving on dirt and gravel roads, and most of them offered a smoother ride. The potholes, poorly installed crosswalks, AND speeding drivers make it unsafe for pedestrians and car traffic alike. I can't believe that street is still in such poor condition. Also, it's an incredibly ugly eyesore.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 21:25
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Quite a regular
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Couldn't agree more Vigilante. I would also add taxi drivers and public bus drivers to the list of serial offenders. One of my pet peeve intersections is Sip and Summit avenue (where Sip dead-ends into the DMV). Motorists making a right onto Sip from Summit just blow through their right turn when they have a green, despite pedestrians having the walk signal. The buses barely slow down; you have to run for your life if one of them is coming. I have stood in crosswalk, gesturing toward my walk signal and have had motorists beep at me. Now I could really get started about the double-parkers on Sip, but that's another thread entirely . . . The cops just don't seem to care. I've seen them overlook these things time and time again.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 20:53
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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I constantly see people walking against the light on Washington by Newport. I've had to slam on my brake a few times there when I've had the light and some idiot pedestrians decide to jump off the curb and run across the street to get the the Path. Some of these people aren't even looking to see if a car is coming.
Yes there are A LOT of unsafe drivers in JC but there are also some bonehead pedestrians too.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 20:53
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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According to this Jersey City only ranks fifth in the county in terms of walkability. That was "county", not "country". Sure, the other cities are smaller, but not sure why you would automatically dismiss them for size. People are constantly making one comparison or another between Jersey City and NYC - and NYC is 30+ times larger. Also - walkability ratings don't explicitly take safety into account. While essentially all of Jersey City is urban and technically "walkable" and much of it has convenient public transportation there are parts of the city you wouldn't walk in out of concern for crime. And is there a worse place in the country of JC's size for bicycling? I can't imagine one.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 20:46
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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Is there room for improvement with walkability? Yes. But let's be serious - Jersey City is probably the MOST walkable city of it's size (250,000) in the United States. If you look at ALL cities 100,000+, Jersey City probably still ranks in the top 10 in terms of walkability.
The whole Columbus Drive project is a disaster, and very frustrating for me to even think about. A total waste of money. And I really hate how Columbus sort of dissects downtown. I also feel like the Grand Street widening was a big mistake. It's VERY dangerous for pedestrian crossing. Jersey City politicians should be making the streets of downtown Jersey City LESS driver-friendly, to encourage use of public transportation for the suburban commuters.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 20:24
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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All of what has been said is true. Drivers around here are incredibly inconsiderate. Taxi drivers, dollar bus drivers and police seem to be amoung the worst. (Folks around here use their horn more than their directionals) Others like myself, that have lived in other parts of the world, attribute it to the self centered culture that is pervasive in this area. Other parts of the country like Florida and Mass. have less skilled drivers. Around here many drivers are skilled but just rude.
It must also be said that pedestrians around here often act in the same manner. They will cross in the wrong spots against lights. I've seen folks walk directly into traffic just on faith that an auto will have to stop to avoid hitting them. Only aggressive ticketing and the pain of a fine will keep any of these aholes from this continued behavior.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 20:03
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I'm not perfect.....but I'm not all bad either.
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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Been here 22+ years and I have never seen such disregard for pedestrian safety. The JCPD are some of the worst offenders. I have seen an endless stream of dangerous and aggressive drivers in this city. I have seen people jump Stop-signs right in front of JCPD officers and nothing is done.
The best way to deal with traffic is to sloooooow it down. More Stop-signs, speed BUMPS and Traffic-lights are needed. I also have to call out many of my neighbors who drive like real morons. These are people with small children and yet they feel they have some right to disregard traffic regulations. So many times I see residents from Pavonia Ave near White Star making a turn right through the Stop-sign at Coles and Pavonia. It's always the same people, JC lifers who are often elderly and driving giant sedans and SUV's. The delivery drivers around here are no better.
Posted on: 2011/3/1 19:40
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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I saw Fulop speak recently and asked him about the crosswalks on Christopher Columbus (why were they changed to be less pedestrian friendly) and he said that the Healy crew is focused on getting traffic in/out of JC as quickly as possible. He also said that in Hoboken it was designed to have pedestrians rule the road and JC the exact opposite. Any walkability talk is utter nonsense and just lip service to try and get a mention in a paper.
The actions of the current administration are clear - we encourage speeding drivers from Montclair to make life worse for JC pedestrians...
Posted on: 2011/3/1 19:19
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Re: JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Home away from home
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My conspiracy theory:
safer nicer cleaner downtown -> elevated demand for real estate downtown -> downtown market saturates -> other neighborhoods in jersey city experience nontrivial gentrification -> more Steven Fulop types get elected -> Healy / Hudson county political machine loses power Just writing it out, it seems a bit ridiculous, but maybe there's a grain of truth?
Posted on: 2011/3/1 19:18
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JC's (safe) walkability factor (major failure)
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Quite a regular
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Over the past few years there's been a noticeable push by JC government and some local real estate developers to make JC one of those high ranking safe for pedestrian shopping "walkable neighborhoods". Frankly as much as I want to see this be a reality, I laugh at it. Since I moved to JC about 4 years ago, I've seen and read about more car accidents on the local streets of downtown JC than I care to count. I've witnessed the most lawless and reckless driving on our local streets in my lifetime than anywhere else I've lived. I've been witness to a pedestrian crossing guard near a school get hit by a car on Marin Blvd and 9th Street. I witness on a daily basis people running across major streets like chickens because of a lack of traffic lights to accommodate a large proportion of pedestrians who need access to local public transit centers (PATH/LightRail). I've been nearly hit by a car rushing up Erie St. I see everyday drivers crossing main streets only looking one way and not even giving a care about a pedestrian crossing from the other side of their view. Just last night a JC police car sped right past me turning up onto Jersey Ave (in a non-emergency) as I was crossing and already in the cross-walk missing me by 2 feet. Not comforting.
So I have to ask the mayor, the JC council members, and local real estate developers (with enticing walkable marketing campaigns)... what the hell are you doing to make Jersey City a safe and walkable environment for pedestrians and drivers alike?
Posted on: 2011/3/1 17:57
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