the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, according to NJDOT , “Crosswalks are the safest place for people on foot to cross a road. However, while the law assigns pedestrians the right of way if they enter a crosswalk properly, it does not relieve pedestrians of the responsibility to keep alert and cross with caution. Here are answers to come commonly asked questions about crosswalks.” But maybe not so in the Village of Ridgewood.
The Village has a crosswalk sign problem . Currently the Village is the only town in Bergen County with defective signs by that we mean that many of the crosswalk signs in the Village are simply too low.
Resident Francis Geraghty told the Ridgewood blog that he had witnessed and accident between a cyclist and pedestrian near Marshall Street who both claimed the crosswalk sign was too low . Geraghty followed up with a letter to Village Hall and the power that be agreed seeing the infinite wisdom in his request and raised the sign.
Geraghty pointed out the crosswalk sign at Christ Church needs to be raised . In New Jersey drivers must stop when a pedestrian enters the crosswalk and over the years the Ridgewood blog has featured the raging debate of “cars vs pedestrians” . Drivers accuse pedestrians of jay walking and pedestrians accuse drivers of speeding . In either case higher signs mean greater visibility of crosswalks .
What happened too look both ways before crossing the street like we were all taught years ago. That still is the safest way.
Bingo! I’ve seen joggers in the Village dressed all in black at night run across streets without even looking at oncoming cars. Stupid.
That’s the old cartoon public safety message about crosswalks. I defy anyone to look both ways at a crosswalk and unless it’s at 4am, ever find nothing coming either way.
If that’s the case, then why do we even have crosswalks?
Sidewalks are not supposed to be running tracks. About to turn right on godwin from clinton at dusk, 2 joggers in dark clothes bolted in front of me from behind the bushes, despite me looking both ways muliple times. i jammed my brakes and fortunately they did not become hood ornaments. by law i would have been at fault despite their causing it. the village needs to enforce the ordinance about 45 degree clear views at corners. if homeowner doesnt reply to a polite letter give them a hefty fine and send village employees with chain saw, and send a big bill
The problem in Ridgewood is the huge influx of former NY’ers who seem to think there are no traffic rules in NJ. They are running thru stop signs, ignoring the cross walks, and generally driving too fast.
I’m more concerned with the old coots behind the wheel as opposed to those dreaded interlopers
cars with ny plates on rt 80 and rt 17 think the left lane is reserved for them and they travel 10mph less than posted impeding traffic
I don’t know if they are from NY or not but boy the driving is horrendous (so is the jaywalking)
Yes the big problem is the jaywalkers, and the police do nothing about it. Let me tell you, if any of you nitwits walk out in between the car and I hate you guess what it’s your Effen fault and the story. That’s why I have a camera mounted on my front windshield so when you walk out in between cars or right in front of me or run off the sidewalk even in a crosswalk without looking guess what it’s your fault you ran off the sidewalk nitwit. What do you expect people to just slam on the brakes because you ran off the sidewalk in a crosswalk don’t think so. My lawyer will rip you apart. And that’s what cops need to worry about pedestrians riding their bicycles and running right into the street. Stop worrying about Route 17 and worry about the CBD. We pay taxes for you to patrol Ridgewood streets not state highways. And don’t come back with some beer story nobody wants to hear it.
Right! Why are we paying police to patrol rt 17, it’s a state highway. Let the state police department worry about it. Does the village do maintenance on that road .