The addition of bike lines to Washington Street has been a topic of interest amongst city residents since last year. A proposal to add lanes specifically for cyclists was approved but met with much debate, primarily on the argument that the main vessel of Washington does not have enough room for drivers and cyclists. A new plan was brought to a vote on Wednesday, February 17, and the City Council adopted the redesign with an 8-to-1 vote.
The original plan for the proposal would have created protected bike lanes with a barrier between bikers and vehicles. The new plan narrows Washington Street’s roadway to 14 feet, includes on-street bike lanes, and retains parking spots. According to the Hudson Reporter, downtown Hoboken will have bike lanes between parked cars and moving traffic as well as 11-feet-wide travel lanes on both sides of the road. Sharrows, or markings on the road that would allow cyclists to share the road with drivers, are currently being discussed for uptown Hoboken. Models are being generated to conclude whether the sharrows would be a feasible solution for the uptown community. Unlike the original Class 1, “protected bike lanes” proposal, the revised, Class 2 proposal has painted buffers.  This would allow for the bike lanes to be used by emergency vehicles and others if necessary.
Despite the initial negative responses to bike lanes from Hoboken residents and business owners, the city provided new studies that show that the bike lanes will increase business. The redesign passed by the City Council seems to be favored over the original plan. City Council President Jen Giattino was the only Council member to oppose the plan.”I personally am not comfortable with nine council members, who are not engineers, sitting here designing Washington Street,” said Giattino.
This plan will be a part of the $15 million budget attributed to the redesign of Washington Street. Although this proposition was met with more support, some residents who attended the Wednesday meeting were upset that the public did not receive a copy of the final concept. At the meeting, representatives from T&M Associates (the engineering firm who is heading the project) brought insight from Hoboken residents. They claimed that many supported the major street and safety improvements that also constitute the project. Some favorable upgrades included synchronized lighting, new traffic signals, new water mains, ADA curb ramps, and establishing a micro-grid to act as an electrical backup system and roadway resurfacing. Overall, it appears that Washington Street is moving forward in its plans for improvement, however the city will still have to vote on specific aspects of the project.
