Hoboken recently celebrated the grand opening of ResilienCity Park, New Jersey’s largest resiliency park, which has the capacity to store up to 2 million gallons of rain and mitigate flooding. Check out the video for a few highlights!
Video created by Branding Shorts
The City of Hoboken today called for public feedback on two designs for critical safety improvements along Willow Avenue from 11th Street to 16th Street. The corridor is part of Hoboken’s High Crash Network and Hudson County’s Bicyclist High Injury network, which contain higher crash and injury rates relative to the rest of the city, according to both Hoboken’s and Hudson County’s Vision Zero Plans.
The proposed designs, created as part of the Willow Avenue Vision Zero Safety Improvement Project in collaboration with Hudson County, incorporate a number of proven safety measures, including those identified in the County’s Vision Zero Safety Action Plan and Hoboken Street Design Guide. These include, protected bikeways, high-visibility crosswalks, pedestrian refuge islands, ADA-accessible curb ramps, curb extensions, back-in angle parking, designated loading and drop-off zones in front of Wallace Elementary School, chicanes to calm bicycle speeds and traffic in front of Wallace Elementary School, leading pedestrian interval (LPI) signal timing, improved signal timing and lighting, travel lane reductions, raised pedestrian crossings, delineators, and more.
Since the City and County hosted two public meetings in June, the project team further refined the designs to reflect the public input gathered to date.
The primary difference between the two designs is the placement of a protected bike lane which is either located on both sides of Willow Avenue, or located on the east side of Willow Avenue as a two-way protected bikeway.
The project team is now extending the comment deadline to Aug. 5 to allow for additional feedback which can be provided online via a contact form at www.hobokenwillowave.com
The improvements are based on national best practices and supported by data:
“We are taking bold, data-driven steps to reach our ambitious Vision Zero goals of eliminating all traffic deaths and injuries by 2030 to make Hoboken’s streets safer for everyone,” said Mayor Ravi S. Bhalla. “Safer streets support a more connected community and strengthen local businesses by encouraging foot traffic and creating a more welcoming environment. This is also a reminder that safety doesn’t happen by chance, it happens by choice, by design, and through your engagement. Let’s continue working together toward a Hoboken where every street is safe for every person.”
“As your elected officials, we must work together with you - the community and our residents - to make our roads safer for all users and achieve the Vision Zero Target Year of 2034 to eliminate fatalities and injuries on county roads. Which is why I urge residents to assess the Vision Zero Safety Improvement Project for Willow Avenue, express your views, unique perspectives and share your insights to improve, enhance and refine the proposed design,” said Hudson County Executive Craig Guy.
The project team will host additional community engagement sessions this fall to collect public input to further refine the project before presenting a final design to the public. Construction is anticipated to begin in 2027.
The City and County installed curb extensions and other safety upgrades on Willow Avenue and 11th Street in 2021 and were later awarded $1.4 million in 2023 to further install Vision Zero Safety improvements on Willow Avenue from 11th to 16th Street as part of the Willow Avenue Vision Zero Safety Improvements Project.
To learn more about the project and review the designs, visit www.hobokenwillowave.com.
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