Dear Editor:
The recent decision by the N.J. Turnpike to re-route truck traffic to exit 14B in Jersey City from 14A in Bayonne is a major mistake. Bayonne has made the decision to redevelop the 438 acre Military Ocean Terminal into a container port, which will produce a greater amount of truck traffic in the future. Instead of redesigning 14A to accommodate this increased traffic, the Turnpike Authority will make the trucks travel further away from Bayonne’s industrial center into Jersey City, and then travel along single lane roads behind Liberty State Park and the Liberty Golf Course or along Garfield Avenue to Bayonne. Additionally, trucks will also re-route to Route 440 to avoid these traffic delays. This is both environmentally and economically wrong. The slower moving traffic will cause more pollution endangering our citizen’s health and the additional travelling time will cost more in wasted gas that we must import from the Middle East. Jersey City should not be negatively impacted by the state of NJ for the industrial re-development decisions of Bayonne.
Sincerely,
Jeff H. Kaplowitz
Jersey City