In an editorial, five members of separate Jersey City advocacy groups spell out what needs to be done to allow everyone in the city to cross the streets safely.
On Friday, June 13th, 2025, six year old Eli Bender was killed crossing the street with his father in an intersection with a green walk signal. The UPS driver who killed him, turned left, also on a green signal, and failed to yield to a child crossing the street.
This is the second truck crash death we’ve had in Jersey City this year, while on March 10th, 2025, a 67 year old man was also killed in a crosswalk with a green signal on Summit Ave.
No more. These deaths are not freak accidents, they can and must be stopped.
We hereby demand the Jersey City Council and the Mayor’s office to take immediate action.
1. Speed Kills: Slow Turns & Reduce Speeds
Evidence shows time and time again that high speeds take lives. We ask you to implement the following lifesaving measures:
• Reduced citywide speed limit to 20MPH
• Install leading pedestrian intervals at every intersection in the city
• Left-turn calming through physical infrastructure and banning left turns when necessary.
2. Hardened Infrastructure
Flexposts and signage are insufficient to address the dangers our city residents face. We are asking for improved hardened infrastructure, including planters, boulders, and concrete curb extensions.
We want to see immediate improvements along the High Injury Network. We ask the council to immediately approve these changes or pass an ordinance for automatic approval instead of a piecemeal approach.
New safety improvements should not be held up by bureaucratic hurdles or politics. We call on the council to require that all new road resurfacing automatically include vital safety improvements like chicanes, pinch points, and bike lanes as approved in the Bike Master Plan. We demand that curb extensions be installed at every intersection citywide.
3. Increased Enforcement
We are building on previous calls to increase both parking and traffic enforcement. We ask that at least six officers be dedicated to traffic enforcement and that regular targeted high-visibility enforcement be conducted on an ongoing basis.
We are asking for the WOTS app to return to full functionality and that all parking violations be meaningfully enforced. Illegally parked cars create a considerable hazard at intersections. We ask for automated parking enforcement to be implemented on an accelerated timeline.
4. Emergency Funding for the Department of Infrastructure
Safety improvements require funding. We ask you to provide immediate funding and staffing to the Department of Infrastructure to do its vital work.
We call on city council members to vote down any budget that does not increase funds for the lifesaving work of this Department. Going forward, we call on the city to create a dedicated funding source for capital and operational budgets related to street safety improvements.
5. Citywide Commitment on Vision Zero
Despite being drafted in 2019 with a goal of zero deaths and serious injuries by 2026, more than half of Jersey City’s Vision Zero action items haven’t been implemented. Quarterly Vision Zero Task Force meetings are sparsely attended, with key members like Public Safety, Public Works, and Parking Enforcement typically absent.
We call on the Mayor to accelerate the completion of the existing Vision Zero goals set out by the city, hold departments accountable for failing to meet existing objectives, and fund a public campaign to educate the public on the importance of traffic calming measures and keep safety improvements top of mind.
Mayor Fulop’s Vision Zero plan is currently off track. We need to complete our existing goals and do more immediately to hit the city’s 2026 goal.
Signed,
Philippia Vaartstra, Founder, JC Heights Parents
Ayla Schermer, President, Bike JC
James Seymour and Ashley Swiggett, Community Lead, Traffic Reform Warriors
Talya Schwartz, President, Safe Streets JC
Eric Allen Conner, Better Blocks NJ
