Editor’s note: According to Mayor Linda Schwager, in response to our question about how the money will be used, “The borough requested $320,000 out of a total estimated project cost of $406,000. The project was to install sidewalks on several roads leading to Heights School as well as on Oak Street to VMS. Other project elements would include the installation of flashing school crossing signs, textured pavement crosswalks, associated ADA compliant curb ramps and bike ramps.”
In response to how the money will be used, Borough Administrator, Rich Kunze:
“Last summer the Borough submitted a grant application through the NJDOT Safe Routes to Schools program to install sidewalks on several roads leading to Heights School as well as on Oak Street, leading to Valley Middle School. The roads around Heights School that would receive sidewalks include all or a portion of Princeton, Loyola, Fordham, Tulane and Stevens. Other project elements would include the installation of flashing school crossing signs, textured pavement crosswalks, associated ADA compliant curb ramps and bike racks.
This particular project is a continuation of an initiative that began several years ago to add sidewalks near the schools to enhance walkability and pedestrian safety. The areas around Dogwood and Manito elementary Schools have already been completed, along with a small section of sidewalk leading to IHHS.
The total estimated project cost is $406,000 and our full grant request was for $320,000 so we will need to review the grant guidelines and cost estimates to see what we can accomplish with the funding we are going to receive. As to the project timeframe, the construction work itself should take no more than a couple of months. However, the funding is ultimately from the federal government so given the expected time it may take for detailed review, permits and federal authorization, we are probably looking at doing the work in 2016.”
Cardinale Announces Funding for Oakland School Safety Project
Senator Gerald Cardinale (R-Bergen, Passaic) today announced $200,090 in funding under the state Department of
Transportation’s Safe Routes to School Program for a pedestrian safety project at the Borough of Oakland’s Heights Elementary School and Valley Middle School.
Safe Routes to School is a federal, state and local effort to enable and encourage children, including those with disabilities, to walk and bicycle to school.
“This funding is great news for the families, students and staff at Heights Elementary and Valley Middle schools and the borough as a whole,” said Cardinale. “Improving the routes that children walk or bike to school is not only important for the safety of the students but also heightens the appeal of the neighborhood as a whole.
Having a safe way for children to get back and forth from school each day is a fundamental part of providing an atmosphere where they can thrive and be successful.”
About The Safe Routes to School Program
Safe Routes to School (SRTS) is a federal, state and local effort to enable and encourage children, including those with disabilities, to walk and bicycle to school. SRTS facilitates the planning, development and implementation of projects that improve safety and air quality, as well as reduce traffic and fuel consumption around schools.
Goals
The goals of the SRTS Program are to encourage more students to walk and bike to school where it is safe to do so and to improve the areas where it is not safe.
In New Jersey, we hope to accomplish these goals by providing:
- Funding to schools and communities to improve walking and bicycling conditions to schools through the SRTS Infrastructure Grant Program and
- Assistance to schools and communities with Non-Infrastructure Programs through the New Jersey SRTS Resource Center.
Program Benefits
SRTS programs bring a wide range of benefits to students and the community. These include:
- increasing the health and mobility of school-age children,
- reducing congestion, air pollution and traffic conflicts around schools,
- establishing healthy lifetime habits for students,
- increasing children’s independence,
- helping them arrive at school ready to learn, and
- teaching safe pedestrian, bicyclist and driver skills.
The Five E’s
The SRTS Program is organized around five complimentary strategies known as the five E’s. They are:
- Engineering: Making the environment safer for walking and bicycling
- Encouragement: Encouraging kids to walk and bike to school more often
- Education: Teaching kids and parents safe ways to walk and bike
- Evaluation: Checking to see how many kids are walking and biking as a result of the program or how conditions have improved
- Enforcement: Changing driver, walker and bicyclist behavior as they travel together along the road
Projects that incorporate all five E’s are likely to be more effective and sustainable.
Here’s a great way to not only spend this money but make even more. Have OPD institute a “no tolerance” policy for speeders. With the amount of money they’d raise in speeding tickets, we could install sidewalks on every street which would allow the residents to walk or bike to and from the schools safely.