NJ Governors Race - Where Do the Candidates Stand?

We know where they stand on the World Series but where are they on Complete Streets? With the New Jersey Governor's Race heating up in Tuesday's election our partners at the Tri State Transportation Campaign (TSTC) sent out a transportation questionnaire to the three gubernatorial candidates - Jon Corzine, Chris Christie and Chris Daggett. The Corzine and Daggett campaigns returned responses. The Questionnaire addressed issues such as land use, the Transportation Trust Fund, traffic safety, transit and accountability of transportation spending.

From Mobilizing The Region:

Traffic Safety

In 2008, 592 people died on New Jersey roadways. Of those, more than 160 were pedestrians or cyclists. Here’s what the candidates said they would do to make roads safer:

Governor Corzine cited success in his 2006 goal of reducing traffic fatalities to below 700 annually. Part of that success he attributes to his $74 million pedestrian initiative, which included a Safe Routes to School program, Safe Routes to Transit program and other pedestrian infrastructure improvements and programs. The Democrat also mentioned that NJ is still working toward the goal of creating 1,000 miles of bikeways in the state, noting that the League of American Bicyclists ranked NJ the ninth most bike-friendly state in the nation.

Corzine stated that he will sign a Complete Streets policy if it should cross his desk, and is willing to accept the goal of reducing traffic accidents and pedestrian fatalities by 50% in the next five years. As evidence of his commitment to senior pedestrian safety, he cited NJDOT’s Senior Safety Study, which incorporates senior-friendly infrastructure and education into a targeted intersection pilot program. Corzine also noted that while he doesn’t often have the chance to ride a bike, he enjoys running marathons.

Chris Daggett did not specifically address our questions regarding pedestrian safety, but specified the need for investment in bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure elsewhere in his responses, calling safe walking and cycling “one of the challenges of the 21st century” that the next governor must address.

TSTC was unable to find statements from Chris Christie regarding traffic safety. Both he and Gov. Corzine have been criticized for poor driving records.

You can read TSTC's complete analysis of the responses in two parts on their Mobilizing The Region blog (http://tinyurl.com/njgovbikerace)