Pay stations in operation for one block along Broadway.
The Bayonne Parking Authority announced that it will launch a pilot program that will replace parking meters with pay stations on both sides of Broadway between 22nd and 23rd streets. Beginning on Tuesday, July 5, the Parking Authority will try out pay stations with a pay-and-display system for a three-month period. There are two reasons for trying out the pay stations on Broadway: 1) By removing metered spaces, the number of parking spots may increase. 2) Pay stations require less maintenance than parking meters.
Once the pilot program begins on July 5, motorists will pay for their parking spots at pay stations that will be located on Broadway midway between 22nd and 23rd streets. The pay stations will generate receipts that the motorists must display under the passenger side of their windshields, where parking enforcement officers will expect to see them. During the first week of the pay station program, either a Parking Authority employee or a representative of the pay station vendor, Meter Products of Paterson, N.J., will assist motorists with the new system.
The pay stations will accept only coins, as do the existing on-street parking meters. Meter Products will provide Bayonne with two solar-powered pay stations for the trial period. Parking meter heads will be removed from both sides of Broadway between 22nd and 23rd streets, in order to make the pay stations the effective points of payment. Once the parking meter heads have been removed, motorists can disregard the boundaries of on-street parking spaces that were marked by the meters. With the pay station system, motorists will be allowed to park in any legal parking space on both sides of Broadway between 22nd and 23rd streets.
Charges against Cotter dismissed
Assault charges filed against Tom Cotter last year as a result of a heated exchange between him and Bob DeChairo, president of the Cal Ripkin League, were dismissed by the Bayonne Municipal Court in mid-June, ending a year-long saga that may or may not have been tied to Cotter’s failed run for City Council in 2010. The alleged argument occurred behind closed doors and with no witnesses.
More lanes for 14A in Bayonne
The New Jersey Turnpike Authority announced on June 22 that it would add three lanes to the extremely congested Turnpike Extension 14A exit into Bayonne.
A study conducted several years ago by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority showed that with the exception of interchange 8A in Monroe Township, the Bayonne exit is the least functional of any interchange in the state.
Even on days when there is no accident or breakdown on the Turnpike bridge that connects Bayonne, Jersey City, and the Holland Tunnel to the main branch of the Turnpike near Newark Airport, backups at rush hour are routine and can often leave drivers frustrated and enraged.
This represents a shift in plans that were proposed earlier this year when the Turnpike officials seemed to be leaning towards a plan that would divert truck traffic from Bayonne to the Jersey City exit.
In the 1950s and over the years, main arteries of the Turnpike have been widened, but not the Turnpike Extension servicing exits 14A, 14B, and 14C – this despite the fact that some estimates suggest as many as 100,000 vehicles now use the extension each way daily, and that traffic into and out of Bayonne will increase dramatically with the city’s continuing development.
This is part of a $500 million reconstruction effort of the Turnpike extension, which will include work on the Newark Bay Bridge. The major goals are to relieve traffic congestion, add capacity, increase safety, reduce travel time, and improve air quality. If everything goes according to schedule, the interchange would be completed by 2016.
“The Turnpike Newark Bay extension is an important connection between our homes and the rest of the state,” he said. “Bayonne residents account for more Turnpike toll money than any other New Jersey community.”
A public hearing is planned for July 12 at the Washington Community School in Bayonne and on July 13 at the Fred Martin School in Jersey City. Both meeting will run from 5 to 7 p.m. with a presentation at 6 p.m. of the proposed plans.
Freeholders pass $472M budget
With only Freeholder Tilo Rivas of Union City voting against it, the Hudson County Freeholders voted to pass a $472 million 2011 year budget at their meeting on June 23.
Freeholder Jeff Dublin voted by phone. Jersey City Freeholder Eliu Rivera was absent due to illness.
“The biggest increase is caused by and increase in cost of health benefits,” said Freeholder Chairman Bill O’Dea. “We were able to cut amount to be raised by taxes by $2 million through the review process and have an agreement to further curtail spending to build up surplus.”
The average Jersey City home owner can expect to pay about $10 to $15 more this year as a result of this budget, O’Dea said.
Taxpayers countywide will pay nearly $280 million, a 3.8 percent increase over last year. Guttenberg’s tax levy will decrease by 9.63 percent, while Weehawken and Secaucus saw the biggest increases of the 12 municipalities in Hudson County. Secaucus sees almost a 16 percent increase in county taxes, while Weehawken homeowners will see nearly a 16.7 percent increase.
Suspicious container found in Bayonne
A 15-gallon drum marked “toxic” was found by Bayonne firefighters at about 6 p.m. on June 23 in the area of 169 West 28th Street near the curb.
Firefighters cordoned off the area and representatives from the state Department of Environmental Protection and Hudson Regional Health Commission were called to the scene.
The Bayonne Fire Department Hazmat Team donned protective gear, and metered the area to check for any harmful readings. There were no harmful readings.
The DEP, in conjunction with a cleanup contractor (Ken’s Marine Service of Bayonne), removed the container from the scene at about 9 p.m. According to a DEP representative, early testing reportedly points to a petroleum-based product, and will undergo further analysis. The Bayonne Fire Department cleared the scene at about 10:15 p.m.