Ward C Councilperson Richard Boggiano and Mayor Steven Fulop, we the residents of Ward C demand that St. Pauls Avenue be included in Jersey City's Slow Streets program. For far too long our residential streets have been treated as thruways for commercial traffic and out-of-towners. The Journal Square neighborhood has a serious lack of recreational space. Implementing the Slow Streets program on St. Pauls Avenue will provide residents and families with much-needed recreational space while allowing us to safely maintain social distancing guidelines.

The Slow Streets program would close selected streets to through traffic and allow pedestrians and bikes to use the whole street. The goal of the program is to create more open space for social distancing and act as a relief valve for in-demand parks. Slow Streets would entail 24/7 partial closures on the selected streets while Shelter in Place orders are in effect. These streets will be for local vehicular access only and social distancing will continue to be required. Traffic control will be implemented using temporary barriers and signs, and the City would use all available communication channels to inform residents and visitors. Other American cities that have implemented Slow Streets-like programs include Hoboken, New York City, Oakland, CA, Denver, CO, Boston, MA, and Los Angeles, CA.