Montclair introduces draft of safe streets plan

Montclair is rolling out a plan to make the township's streets safer and more user-friendly, with possibilities of infrastructure upgrades on high-traffic streets and increased education and enforcement.

The township has released a draft plan of the township’s SAFE (Streets Are For Everyone) Complete Streets Implementation project, the goal of which is to make Montclair’s streets safer for pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and mass transit users. The plan came up for discussion during a meeting of the SAFE steering committee Tuesday afternoon.

That meeting occurred nearly a week after a Montclair pedestrian was killed after being struck by a motor vehicle on Grove Street. That accident is still under investigation at this time.

One aspect of the plan identifies several “priority streets” -- streets that are in need of improvements or upgrades. These streets include several arterial roads, including Bloomfield Avenue, Grove Street, North Mountain Avenue and South Mountain Avenue.

The draft plan includes a “menu” of infrastructure upgrade options, depending on the type of street and the volume of traffic. Some of the infrastructure options include bike lanes or sharrows, where applicable; pedestrian "islands" in the middle of crosswalks, and improved countdown signals at crosswalks.

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