Tag: Pedestrian Safety

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(You’re) Damned if You Do And Damned if You Don’t ….Making Right Turn in Paramus

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by Frank Geraghty

Paramus NJ, The DOT has a big problem on Front Road & Midland Avenue in Paramus that is why a rare warning sign has been placed on From Road at Midland Avenue before traffic signals, “Right Turn Must Yield To Pedestrians”. I see big problems there too but I have a different solution. Motorists making a right on red especially during rush hour are forced to move fast to avoid getting hit by fast moving horn blowing vehicles coming from under the Garden State Parkway overpass. See enclosed photos taken on a quiet Sunday of a white car forced to abruptly stop on crosswalk as a speeding black car passes. Scared drivers who would prefer not to make a right on red are forced to make a right turn by horn blowing motorists from behind.

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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.

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Two Crosswalks Needed on Very Busy Ridgewood Avenue Across from the Duck Pond

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by Francis Geraghty

Ridgewood NJ, in a few months as the weather improves workers from medical buildings including 1200 east Ridgewood Avenue & other nearby buildings on south side of the avenue will once again risk their lives crossing this busy avenue to get to the wild duck pond to walk or eat lunch, It reminds me of young sea turtles in Cosumel Mexico dashing from their nests to the nearby ocean while trying to avoid being picked off by hungry birds overhead.  Two painted or lit up cross walks across this very busy Ridgewood avenue at the entrance and exit to the wild duck pond would be a great way to help pedestrians crossing back and forth.

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Ridgewood Crosswalk Safety Update

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, New Jersey experiences a disproportionate number of pedestrian injury crashes and fatalities compared to the nation as a whole. On Tuesday we notices somewhere north of 25 cars flying through the crosswalk Infront of the Ridgewood Library and Ridgewood Police Station with in a 10 minute period . Would have made a ticket bonanza for the Village .

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ATM Blind Spot on Franklin Avenue in Ridgewood

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by Frank Geraghty

Ridgewood NJ, a reader has been making the rounds in the Village of Ridgewood and pointing out , blind turns , dangerous intersections, bad signage and roads in need of repair . The ATM machine on the front side of the TD Bank facing Franklin Avenue puts bank customers in a blind spot unable to see vehicles exiting the bank’s drive through window and motorists can not see the customer exiting the ATM machine . This safety issue could be easily remedied by adding a fence on the left side of the ATM blocking the egress to the driveway so the ATM customer does not inadvertently walk into an on coming car exiting the drive through window.

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Ridgewood Citizens Safety Advisory Committee (CSAC) to Install Pedestrian Safety Banners in the CBD

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the staff of Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, in an effort to insure pedestrian safety in Ridgewood’s Central Business District the Ridgewood Citizens Safety Advisory Committee proposed putting up 12 banners on light poles that are equipped with banner sleeves in the central business district  as part of the Be Street Smart NJ.

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Dog Walker Struck in Ridgewood’s Central Business District

CBD Ridgewood by ArtChick

file photo by ArtChick

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, yesterday it was reported that a dog walker crossing Broad Street in the Central Business District was hit  by a vehicle and taken to  St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson.  Sadly the dog did not make it . Over the years the Ridgewood blog has reported numerous similar instances .

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A little More Light in Ridgewood’s Central Business District

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photos courtesy of Village of Ridgewood Mayor Ramon Hache

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood Nj, according Village Mayor Ramon Hache ,”Through collaboration with PSE&G, after listening to residents’ concerns, these are the new street lights installed at the corner of E. Ridgewood Ave and S. Walnut St. They will help improve pedestrian safety in the evenings.”

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Reader says, ” it is much more dangerous now to be a driver because all pedestrians feel they have the right of way “

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“I still have a bumper sticker on my car from when they tried this several years ago. In my opinion it is much more dangerous now to be a driver because all pedestrians feel they have the right of way even in front of a car making a turn or mere feet in front of you. Maybe it is now time to convince some people that a car turning–or especially backing up–or within a few feet of you CAN’T SEE YOU and you should cease walking out without looking first!”

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STOP, LOOK AND WAVE PEDESTRIAN SAFETY

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, The Village of Ridgewood, Ridgewood Board of Ed and the Federated HSA want to keep our students and all pedestrians safe.

Stop, Look and Wave, Be Safe, Be Seen is a campaign designed to keep everyone safe by reminding drivers and pedestrians to look out for each other at intersections.  Please read and follow the tips below.

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Reader says , “I am certain that there would be fewer accidents if drivers paid attention to the road and not their electronic devices when driving”

public saftey cbd theridgewoodblog.net

” I am certain that there would be fewer accidents if drivers paid attention to the road and not their electronic devices when driving. Also , when I walk in the CBD I wait for cars to stop and let me cross and they often do not especially on Broad Street in front of the Super Cellars area and Union St. in back of Talbots. Why? because there are no police there. Cars stop in front of Van Neste Square because there are police cars there watching.
Cars are vehicles controlled by people. Many of the people driving cars hate other people and would just as soon run over someone and kill them. Have you noticed in the news how many hit and run driving incidents there are. The question is why are so many people so hateful. Is it because the area is expensive and crowded; is it some kind of me first attitude, and you can go to hell. Of course those things all contribute. Does anyone know other reasons , or the reason? “

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Reader says ,”We need to go back to the ‘look both ways’ mentality, it would be much safer for our pedestrians”

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“We are not doing our kids any favors, agree with the comments here. Kids are empowered to walk across the street at any time, as long as they are in the crosswalk. I had a group of middle school kids leap out in front of me, i was doing between 15-20 mph on Franklin, and it was a challenge to stop on time. luckily, the car in back of me was also able to stop. those kids felt like they could just go at any time, as long as they were in crosswalk. They were not gauging how long it would take me to stop, and how far I was from the crosswalk before they decided to run out. We need to go back to the ‘look both ways’ mentality, it would be much safer for our pedestrians. Don’t even get me started on the commuters when the train arrives. In their dark clothes, they cross when they want to and where they want to, and are very hard to see in the dark. If it is raining, the visibility is even lower. They can see a car with headlights, but I can’t see them. It is a 2-way street. Both pedestrians and cars need to look out for each other. Changes need to be made in CBD with all of the new apartments and traffic flow, 15 mph is a good start. Lighted crosswalks also great. People wearing reflective tape on coats if they walk in the dark, amazing thing to have. Let’s all work together to make these changes, and more. “

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Aronsohn Apologist Has Nerve to Complain About Traffic Congestion in the Ridgewood’s Central Business District

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the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, on one of the many Ridgewood Facebook pages a poster said loved to walk in Ridgewood but cars need to heed New Jersey state traffic law .

MOTORISTS in New Jersey MUST stop for pedestrians in a marked crosswalk. Failure to observe the law may subject you to one or more of the following:
2 POINTS
$200 FINE (plus court costs)
15 DAYS COMMUNITY SERVICE
INSURANCE SURCHARGES
NEW JERSEY STATUTE 39:4-36 states:
-The driver of a vehicle must stop and stay stopped for a pedestrian crossing the roadway within any marked crosswalk.

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Reader says mid block crosswalks are dangerous

New crosswalk warning devices installed on Linwood Avenue

file photo by Boyd Loving

Based on this important Study ..mid block crosswalks like the one in front of the driveway at Kings and the Library should be removed until a mid block permanent pedestrian triggered red light signal
is installed.

Dark hours and dusk are where danger increases as well as fog and rainy conditions .Children and elders are also particularly at risk at this mid block cross walk.

Police largely ignore this dangerous condition outside their own building partly because they are in seated in patrol cars rather than on foot .A crossing guard in the meantime is needed there for dark winter period.

repeating Lens study Link :

https://www.iihs.org/iihs/news/desktopnews/on-foot-at-risk-study-highlights-rising-pedestrian-deaths-points-toward-solutions

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Ridgewood Downtown beautification vs. crosswalk/pedestrian safety

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August 9,2018

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, Readers:  What’s your opinion?  Do the planters downtown on East Ridgewood Avenue adversely impact crosswalk/pedestrian safety?  Let us know what you think.  Thank you.