A weekly roundup of good deeds, missteps, heroic feats and epic failures in the tri-state region and beyond.
WINNERS
East Harlem Bus Riders – Thanks to efforts by local legislators to restart the project, the M60 Select Bus Service launched this week along 125th street, bringing faster commutes to tens of thousands of bus riders in East Harlem.
NYPD – Dangerous driving tickets are up for the third month in a row as the NYPD is enthusiastically continuing its crackdown on dangerous drivers in New York City. More than 4,800 tickets were issued citywide in a 48-hour period this past week.
Little Egg Harbor, NJ resident Art Mooney – Mooney has been working hard to speak up for the neglected roadways in his community, writing to Assemblymembers to remind them that “Route 9 does not end at affluent Long Beach Island”. Mooney wrote: “With the millions of dollars spent on upgrading the Garden State Parkway so that tourists can vacation at the Jersey Shore, maybe the state could find a few dollars to improve road conditions for the seniors and working-class taxpayers of southern Ocean County.”
Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro – The Connecticut Democrat’s National Infrastructure Development Bank Act accumulated 101 cosponsors as of last night — a strong milestone for her efforts to create a sustainable funding structure for infrastructure projects.
LOSERS
House Republicans – In what appears to be a concerted effort to run the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) into the ground, House Republicans are now considering siphoning revenue from the failing US Postal Service to bolster the HTF, as opposed to agreeing to simply raise the gas tax.
New Haven City Plan Commission – Despite ongoing protests calling for a more accessible mixed-use development plan, the Commission approved a special permit for a 763-space parking garage along Route 34, calling the garage “necessary” to the successful marketing of the project’s proposal.
I agree with Mr . Mooney route 9 is heavily used road and the patchwork being done is far from an improvement . Route 9 need to be repaved completely, I have had not only have several wheel alignments but repairs done because Hun caps have been bent. Help us please…..
Art is definitely a winner. Good for him, especially if he gets any division of government to repave RT. 9
ROUTE 9 HELP IS ON THE WAY
Last May an article appeared in the Atlantic City Press entitled “Chorus of voices demands state repair Route 9”. Little Egg Harbor resident Art Mooney said that something needs to be done, the highway is in terrible condition. In January, Mooney wrote to Assemblyman Brian Rumpf, R-Ocean, asking him if something could be done about the condition of Route 9 south from Stafford Township to New Gretna. With the millions of dollars spent on upgrading the Garden State Parkway so that tourists can vacation at the Jersey Shore, maybe the state could find a few dollars to improve road conditions for the seniors and working-class taxpayers of southern Ocean County.
Rumpf responded to Mooney’s claim that the southern portion of Route 9 is snubbed, stating that “I don’t know if that is necessarily the case” but he did forwarded this request to the state. In a letter to the 9th District NJDOT announced that they initiated the design of a project to mill and pave approximately 11 miles of Route 9 in Bass River Twp. Little Egg Harbor Twp. Tuckerton and Eagleswood Twp. The project is being expedited using state funds with a goal of starting construction in the spring of 2016. At a recent Township meeting Little Egg’s mayor Art Midgely stated the Committee has been working on this for years – Yea, politicians, don’t you just love them.