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Hudson Street & Broad Street blind Spot in Ridgewood’s Central Business District

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Frank Geraghty

Ridgewood NJ, on a busy afternoon when a WAGON or another BIG VEHICLE is parked on first spot outside Cafe 37 on S.Broad Street in Ridgewood and when all other parking spots are filled behind, this creates a big problem on a busy day. Cars making left turn from Hudson street will have their vision totally blocked by a BIG vehicle and cannot see fast moving cars approaching from their left & have to hope these cars will not move fast.(see photos). The frightened driver is so preoccupied making the left turn into a blind spot that the motorist completely forgets about pedestrians & traffic coming from the right. The driver always looks like a fool as he or she has to take abuse from motorists in both directions. After failing to find a solution, the town blamed two stores in the intersection. “The Bamboo House” which has a big “Take Out Orders” sign in front window & Super Cellars store next door are now barred from pick-ups & drop offs outside their premises with two big cones attached by tape and a bright yellow paint job which looks so cheap and more like a crime scene from a third world country permanently installed by the village.  Mayor Paul Vagianos who is in the restaurant business should get involved as this would not be allowed to happen next to his restaurant. The bamboo House depends a lot on fast pick ups from outside. Some Mount Carmel parishioners just a few yards away prefer to drive the wrong way into Mt Carmel parking lot for 5;30 mass on a Saturday rather than take a chance on that left turn if a big vehicle is parked in that first spot. The solution to this problem where fender benders have occurred is to remove that first ‘PARKING SPOT” outside Cafe 37. this will give “HUGE VISIBILITY TO  MOTORISTS” making that left turn. The town can then remove all the ugly warning signs from the street outside these two premises in S.Broad street and go back to its elegant self.

Continue reading Hudson Street & Broad Street blind Spot in Ridgewood’s Central Business District

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Reader Calls for , “penalties for the pedestrians who just walk out in front of cars while not looking either way”

crossingthestreet theridgewoodblog.net

” There should also be penalties for the pedestrians who just walk out in front of cars while not looking either way. It should be mandatory that they take caution and pay attention while walking. I was making a turn onto Ridgewood Avenue the other day and a woman walked out in front of me from between the first car–illegally parked at corner–without looking. Fortunately I was able to slam on my brakes but she never once looked up from her phone. The entire burden of caution should not be placed solely on drivers. The pedestrians who think they have the right of way–even against a red light–should also receive a fine or punishment of some sort! I have another question as well. Where did the pedestrians think that it is a great idea to walk behind a car that is backing up? No one ever stops for a backing car and it is very likely that the driver cannot see them when they suddenly appear behind the car. “

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Drivers in New Jersey MUST stop for pedestrians in a marked crosswalks

DecorativeCrosswalks_theridgewoodblog

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, from the NJ Transit Police , whether you’re a parent, caregiver or student yourself, knowing this law can help to make pedestrian travel safer and save you from fines and points this new school year.

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Pedestrian Hit In Cross Walk in Ridgewood

ridgewood_police_theridgewoodblog

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, the Ridgewood Police report that on March 19th patrol units were dispatched to a motor vehicle accident involving a pedestrian at the intersection of East Glen Avenue and North Maple Avenue. Upon arrival the pedestrian was treated for minor injuries and transported by ambulance to the Valley Hospital. The driver of the vehicle involved was issued a summons for failure to yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk.

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Reader says , “I am certain there would be many fewer accidents if pedestrians would not assume that they can walk into any crosswalk without looking”

streetcrossingflags

” I am certain there would be many fewer accidents if pedestrians would not assume that they can walk into any crosswalk without looking as they assume they always have the right of way–even when they are crossing on a red light. I can’t even count the times that the pedestrian is listening to his earphones and doesn’t even look one way before crossing. A car can be right in the midst of a turn or crossing to the other side of the street and the pedestrian–NOT limited to kids–just walks on. It definitely should be the pedestrian’s fault if he/she just walks out. I was there on the corner when a bicyclist kept going against the red light after several cars had already gone through the intersection. Luckily the motorist only hit her back tire but she could have been seriously injured. The responding Officer asked the girl “What in the world were you thinking? You had a red light.”
The gIrl’s response “They always stop for me. I’m in the crosswalk.” This attitude just has to STOP! “

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Ridgewood safety committee proposes pedestrian corridors

DecorativeCrosswalks006_theridgewoodblog

 

DECEMBER 25, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015, 12:31 AM

Charles DiMarco, chairman of Ridgewood Citizens’ Safety Advisory Committee, outlined at last week’s Planning Board meeting proposed changes to future village parking lots to improve pedestrian safety. The presentation was a continuation of the Planning Board’s reexamination of the village’s master plan.

DiMarco said that parking lots can be dangerous to pedestrians walking through them, and that he hopes the village can reduce the risk of pedestrian-vehicle accidents by inserting special places for walkers to move through the lots safely.

“The committee plans to include pedestrian corridors to connect parking lot aisles to facilities,” he said. “The pedestrian corridors would furnish a walkway from the main areas of the parking lot to the main entrance or focal point of the development and thereby reduce the interaction between pedestrians and vehicles in the parking lot.”

He said that these proposed corridors “would also make it easier to walk down the aisle between parked cars” because of additional room and that they “would basically direct pedestrians to a defined location: a safer and clearer crosswalk.”

An example of a parking lot that fits DiMarco’s criteria is the one outside of the library and municipal building.

https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/town-government/pedestrian-corridors-proposed-1.1480208