Highlands Rail Trail, Passaic County
Air quality in North Jersey will be improved thanks to $22.4 million in projects approved by the NJTPA Board at its November 9 meeting. The projects include electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, traffic signal optimization, electric bus purchases, community shuttle replacements, and more.
Funds for the projects come from the region’s allocation of federal Congestion Management Air Quality (CMAQ) funding, which supports locally sponsored projects aimed at reducing air pollution and congestion.
Eleven of the projects, totaling $20.6 million, were funded under NJTPA’s Transportation Clean Air Measures (TCAM) program for Fiscal Year 2021. They were selected in coordination with the New Jersey Department of Transportation:
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EZ Ride - $960,000 for five electric shuttles to be added to the fleet of EZ Ride shuttles, which primarily serve the Greater Newark and Meadowlands area.
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Monmouth County - $200,000 for installing 25 electric charging stations on publicly accessible County properties including offices, parks, libraries, and other publicly available parking lots.
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New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - $5,039,900 to continue the agency’s highly successful program It Pay$ to Plug In, which offsets costs for purchase and installation of EV charging stations.
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Morris County - $3,827,525 for development of the four-mile section of the Patriots’ Path-Morristown/Hanover Shared-Use Path to provide non-motorized bicycle and pedestrian travel options.
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Passaic County - $1,600,000 to extend the Highlands Rail Trail as a primary route for bicycle and pedestrian traffic within Wanaque and the next phase encompassing 1.25 miles on the former Greenwood Lake Railroad right of way.
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International Motor Freight - $4,029,600 for a public-private partnership with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey to replace 20 or more heavy-duty drayage trucks with zero-emissions vehicles operating from the port along the I-80 and I-95 corridors.
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New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - $973,400 for reducing the idling of emergency vehicles, such as police and ambulances, by installing auxiliary power units allowing the vehicles to be fully functional without the engine running.
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City of Paterson - $359,375 for a city-wide traffic signal optimization project.
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Essex County - $2,383,700 to upgrade traffic signals at intersections on Central Avenue (C.R. 508) from standard fixed time traffic signals to adaptive traffic signal technology.
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Hudson County - $240,000 for a second phase of traffic signal optimization extending along JFK Boulevard from Clinton Avenue to Armstrong Avenue in Jersey City towards the Bayonne border.
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Township of Weehawken/City of Union City - $1,000,000 to upgrade traffic signals at 18 County and municipally owned signals to improve mobility through local street networks.
The NJTPA Board also approved $1.8 million in CMAQ funding for four projects under NJTPA’s Local Mobility Initiatives program, which supports local shuttle bus operations and vehicle replacement. The projects were selected in coordination with NJ TRANSIT. Brookdale Community College/Monmouth County will receive $750,000 to start the Jersey Blues Line, a new shuttle bus route connecting the different campuses of Brookdale Community College, providing a viable alternative to driving.
Three vehicle replacement projects were also funded:
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Fort Lee Commuter Ferry Operations, Borough of Fort Lee Parking Authority -$280,000
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Sussex County Skylands Ride, Sussex County Department of Health and Human Services - $500,000
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Orange Commuter Transportation Project, City of Orange Township - $185,000