Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and Jersey City Mayor James Solomon are thanking Gov. Mikie Sherrill (D) for backing the one-bridge concept for the Newark Bay Bridge they advocated for last month.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“Governor Sherrill is showing true, community-led leadership. Today’s decision acknowledges that the previous proposal would’ve opened the floodgates of heavy traffic through communities that already bear a high burden of traffic and air pollution,” they said in a joint statement.
“For years, our communities fought against a seriously ill-conceived plan while proposing serious alternatives. It took Governor Sherrill’s leadership to listen and act in the best interest of the people of New Jersey.”
The mayors of the Garden State’s two largest cities appealed to Sherrill in a February 6th letter, emphasizing that it would be far more cost effective and create less pollution, among other things, than the initial two-bridge plan, as only HCV reported.
“The Governor’s announcement is a major step in the direction of smart transportation policy that upgrades aging infrastructure, while addressing the needs of impacted communities,” Baraka and Solomon added.
“For years, dedicated community activists have campaigned for this reasonable solution. This win for our community is a testament to their hard work of building a coalition across the region.”
Their stance is the same as that of 65 advocacy groups, collectively known as the Turnpike Trap Coalition, who wrote to Sherrill last week.
“ … This $6.7 billion investment will be the largest single project the New Jersey Turnpike Authority has ever advanced. It involves the immediate construction of a four-lane bridge with shoulders and improvements,” Sherrill said in a statement Tuesday afternoon, with her comment about the four-lane bridge indicating the two bridge proposal is dead.
“I am also recommending that the Turnpike Board continue to advance design and permitting work on the roadway structures leading to the Holland Tunnel for safety improvements only, without expanding capacity.”
She also called for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority to require a Project Labor Agreement for the project, which is part of the larger $10.7 billion Turnpike widening effort.