The following is a first-person account from Tri-State’s South Jersey advocate, Matthew Norris:

If you’re a pedestrian or bike commuter in the state of New Jersey, it is probable that you’re used to traveling up to half a mile out of your way to cross busy six-lane thoroughfares (while honking trucks and automobiles swerve around you).

The fact is that walking or peddling to work, school or the grocery store can be an unpleasant and perilous activity throughout the Garden State. But, walkers and cyclists in South Jersey may be at even greater risk, since some of the most dangerous roads in the state are found here. Clearly, if vulnerable road users are to be protected, transportation design and policy priorities need to change.

Because the Tri-State Transportation Campaign is working to raise awareness of and fix dangerous roads in southern New Jersey, and the generally poor options for those who are unable to drive or choose not to do so, they’ve opened a new office in Camden and brought me on board as an advocate for sustainable transportation and pedestrian safety improvements in South Jersey. My goal will be to help create healthier, safer, and more equitable places for our residents.

Before arriving at TSTC, I had always been keenly interested in the ways that public policy, infrastructure and social forces shape the places we call home. My graduate studies in City and Regional Planning at Rutgers University allowed me to consider these and other issues from a planning perspective, while my prior experience with the AARP New Jersey State Office helped me gain a better understanding of the dangers that older pedestrians in particular face as a result of the design of our roads in New Jersey. (A 2010 TSTC study found that pedestrians aged 60 and over in Gloucester County, one of the most car-dependent places in the state, were killed at a rate over three times greater than were those under 60). I am grateful to have had TSTC’s research available on this topic and other local transportation issues for meetings with elected officials, which focused on the importance of updating New Jersey’s infrastructure to protect seniors from harm.

My experience with AARP gave me a passion for advocacy—particularly around pedestrian safety. I soon came to realize the immediacy of this issue and the fact that friends, neighbors and grandparents are the victims of the poor roadway design choices we continue to make in southern New Jersey and beyond. The simple truth is that we must do a better job at protecting all road users—pedestrians, cyclists, transit riders and drivers of automobiles. There are proven roadway design enhancements that can help to accomplish this goal, but there is often not political will to implement them. In my work with TSTC, I will strive to change this, by alerting decision makers of current conditions and their consequences, and by working with various citizens groups, non-profits, planning organizations and elected officials to see that transportation projects in South Jersey consider the needs of all people

I will be reporting here frequently on the progress of these efforts. Please let me know your thoughts and concerns, as well. I am looking forward to talking with you.

Photo: Via Tri-State Transportation Campaign.