New Jersey

New Jersey SRTS Program

Managed by the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT), New Jersey’s federally funded Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program is the source for state coordinator contact details, federal SRTS funding amounts, SRTS applications and guidelines, and state SRTS program information.

Quick Links

New Jersey SRTS Federal Funding  |  Application Guidelines
State SRTS Coalition  |  Regional SRTS Coordinators
State Outreach Programs | Evaluation Methods  |  Success Stories
New Jersey Partner Affiliates  |  Legislation and Policies

New Jersey SRTS Federal Funding

New Jersey’s SRTS funding from FY2005-2009* totals $15,883,526 and includes the following annual apportionments:

* Funding for SRTS is being continued into FY2010 and FY2011 at FY2009 levels.

Application Guidelines

For Fiscal Year 2012, NJDOT solicited grant applications for infrastructure projects only.  The FY2012 handbook explains the infrastructure program's eligibility requirements and selection process.  

New Jersey has now awarded more than $15 million in federal-aid SRTS grants for projects and programs in 83 towns and 192 schools. Every county in the state is now home to at least one SRTS project.

On May 8, 2009, NJDOT awarded $5.4 million in federal SRTS funds, providing grants for projects in 37 municipalities, in amounts ranging from $16,000 to $300,000. Thirty-two infrastructure projects and 12 non-infrastructure projects were funded.

New Jersey awarded their first cycle of grants in July 2007. The NJDOT received 274 applications for over $75 million in projects. $4.15 million was awarded to programs in 30 municipalities. NJDOT announced the second round of SRTS grants in December 2008. Twenty infrastructure projects were funded at over $3.5 million and eleven non-infrastructure projects received more than $430,000.

For Fiscal Years 2007 - 2009, both infrastructure and non-infrastructure grants were solicited by NJDOT through a competitive application process.  The federal funds available in 3005 - 2006 were used to start theprogram including funding the NJDOT State SRTS Coordinator and the state-wide New Jersey SRTS Resource Center.  

Get more information about New Jersey's SRTS program at the NJ SRTS Resource Center and the NJ SRTS Program's monthly news blog, The Safe Routes Scoop.

State SRTS Coalition

NJDOT’s Office of Bicycle and Pedestrian Programs convened a Technical Advisory Committee in 2001 to investigate ways to implement SRTS and utilized consultant resources to help develop a statewide program. A SRTS Strategic Plan was prepared by the NJDOT with assistance from The National Center for Bicycling and Walking, The RBA Group, and The Voorhees Transportation Center at Rutgers University.

The New Jersey SRTS Coalition was formed with the official launch of the SRTS program in 2006, made up of members of the former Technical Advisory Committee as well as representatives from various state and county agencies, local advocacy groups, and non-profits. The Coalition, which meets twice a year, serves as an advisory group to the NJDOT SRTS program and provides input on the statewide program, shares resources, and assesses statewide SRTS needs.

Regional SRTS Coordinators

In partnership with New Jersey's Safe Routes to School Resource Center, Regional Safe Routes to School Coordinators at the state's eight Transportation Management Associations (TMA) provide advice, encouragement and technical assistance in getting Safe Routes to School programs off the ground in communities in all 21 counties.

State Outreach Programs

The NJ State SRTS Coordinator and representatives from the NJ SRTS Resource Center, the NJDOT Office of Bicycle and Pedestrian Programs, and professional on-call consultants continue to collaborate and speak about SRTS and Complete Streets initiatives at local, state and national conferences and workshops.  

In 2005, a SRTS Demonstration Program was conducted in three towns. In the fall of 2006, a series of open houses was held to promote the overall program and explain the grant application process. These open houses were run again in early 2008 with the help of New Jersey’s eight Transportation Management Associations (TMAs).

New Jersey piloted the level two training from the National Center for SRTS in 2007 to local program coordinators and their partners. Local Leadership Workshops were held again in 2008 and a Federal-Aid Workshop for Grant Recipients was offered in May of 2009. Walking School Bus Training has taken place in three towns to date and plans for Walk to School Day Training are in the works.

The New Jersey Urban SRTS Demonstration Program, for which customized workshops and travel plans for 8 schools in Trenton, Newark, and Camden were developed, won awards from the American Planning Association - NJ Chapter and the NJ American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) in 2008 and 2009 respectively.  

Currently, the NJ SRTS Program is being revised to include an updated Strategic Plan, an expanded Resource Center and rigorous community outreach and assistance from 8 regional SRTS Coordinators.  

The NJ SRTS Resource Center is run through the Voorhees Transportation Center (VTC) at Rutgers University.  Staff work with NJDOT to evaluate the success of reaching those most in need of SRTS funds. As part of the SRTS Resource Center, VTC also runs a SRTS list-serve and a help desk, produces a Who’s Who Guide for SRTS in New Jersey and a monthly news blog, the Safe Routes Scoop, twice a year.

Evaluation Methods

Applicants who are awarded NJDOT SRTS project and program funding are required to submit pre- and post-implementation data on their projects. Travel behavior data is gathered using the National Center for Safe Routes to School Student Arrival and Departure Tally Sheet. A Parent Survey has been modified from the National Center’s original and is available in the Resources section of the NJDOT SRTS web site. VTC staff continue to tabulate survey results for NJDOT. 

In addition, the updated SRTS Strategic Plan will include performance measures that are simple, measurable and easily trackable over time.  Update to come.

Success Stories

Schools, municipalities and organizations throughout NJ continue to develop customized programs that are reflective of culture and customs of their communities and implement elements of a Safe Routes to School Program.

Some of New Jersey's early Success Stories include 

• Burlington County  - Burlington County Engineers work with local schools to make County road crossings safer.
• Keep Middlesex Moving (KMM) - KMM provides safety material to help encourage students to walk to school.
• Maplewood - The Jefferson School promotes Walk to School Day to advocate walking and biking.
• Montclair - The Rand School builds strong partnerships to form a committed SRTS Team.
• Newark - The City of Newark implements a successful School Zone Safety Program.
• Somerville - Ridewise TMA and VanDerveer Elementary School establish a Walking School Bus Program.
• Westfield - Westfield develops a priority list of roadway improvements to increase school safety.
• Wharton - Active community participation leads to the development of Wharton School District’s SRTS Travel Plan.

And more recently:

NJ BIKESCHOOL is a comprehensive, on-bike, on-road bicycle pilot safety program targeted to New Jersey’s youth in grades 4-6. 

Borough of Netcong, NJ - Reversal of Bike Ban - July 2009

Wharton, New Jersey: Innovative Student Involvement

New Jersey Partner Affiliates

Find out which organizations in your state have pledged their support for the Safe Routes to School movement. New Jersey Partner Affiliates.

Legislation and Policies

Stop for Crossing Guards

Effective August 1, 2007, fines for failure to comply with a school crossing guard signal to stop were increased to not less than $150 for a first offense. For a subsequent offense the operator shall be fined not less than $300. (N.J.S.A. 39:4-80.1)

Double School Zone Fines

A bill was introduced in January 2006 [S999 (Buono)], which would allow municipalities to double fines for moving violations in school zones, but it has not moved forward.

Pedestrian Crosswalk Laws

New Jersey’s pedestrian laws have been strengthened. Effective April 1, 2010, motorists must stop and remain stopped for pedestrians in crosswalks or risk a $200 fine, 15 days of community service and four points on their licenses. This legislation doubles the fines and increases the portion of each fine to be deposited into the “Pedestrian Safety Enforcement and Education Fund” (N.J.S.A. 39:4-36).

Statewide Health Initiative

Safe Routes to School has been included in the New Jersey Obesity Prevention Action Plan and the Governor’s Pedestrian Safety Initiative, both announced in 2006. SRTS is also included in the state’s Comprehensive Highway Safety Improvement Plan (CHSIP).

Complete Streets Policy

The NJDOT instituted a Complete Streets Policy in December 2009 and several municipalities in New Jersey have done the same. The Office of Bicycle and Pedestrian Programs held a day-long workshop on the policy for NJDOT managers and staff in June and again in August.  

The New Jersey Department of Transportation and the Voorhees Transportation Center, with funding from the Federal Highway Administration, held the NJ Complete Streets Summit on October 11, 2010.  The Summit was cosponsored by the NJ Chapter of the American Planning Association and the Metropolitan Section of the Institute of Transportation Engineers.

On March 23, 2011, key stakeholders gathered at Rutgers University to a) evaluate the range of complete streets-related
activity currently being undertaken, b) coordinate and share complete streets education efforts, c) discuss what level of monitoring and evaluation is currently happening, and d) highlight performance measures that could be included in an ideal complete streets implementation evaluation framework at the state or municipal level.

In the summer of 2012, NJDOT will provide local and regional Complete Streets training throughout the state.