Our Streets: A Trenton Bike Plan for All

Public Engagement Opportunities

The Trenton Division of Planning and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) are requesting comments from the public regarding Trenton’s draft bicycle plan. The plan, Our Streets: A Trenton Bike Plan for All, proposes adding bicycle facilities and making design changes on certain streets within the City to increase safety for all road users – including bicyclists, skaters, scooters, pedestrians, and drivers. Residents will have the opportunity to view the plan recommendations and provide feedback at an in-person event or online. 

Residents are encouraged to attend one of two upcoming in-person meetings:

• RSVP for the meeting on Tuesday, April 25, 2023, from 6:00 pm-8:00 pm, at Jennye Stubblefield Senior Center, 301 Prospect St, Trenton, NJ 08618 
• RSVP for the meeting on Sunday, May 7, 2023, from 1:00 pm-3:00 pm, at Samuel Naples Community Center, 611 Chestnut Ave, Trenton, NJ 08611

In addition to sharing feedback, the public can enjoy free food and Mister Softee ice cream, take part in family-friendly art activities, and enter to win a bike and grocery gift cards. Residents are also invited to bring their bikes in for free tune-ups and to test out a protected bike lane. Spanish language translation will be available. 

From April 26 to June 8, 2023, residents will be able to provide online feedback about the draft bicycle plan at www.dvrpc.org/ourstreets. 

Project Background

The City of Trenton has been working towards the vision of a bikeable and walkable city over the last decade.

• In 2012, City Council passed an award-winning resolution that directed the City to design all projects using Complete Streets principles. Complete Streets are streets designed so that people of all ages and abilities can get around safely without a car.
• In 2021, the City published its Complete Streets Design Handbook, which describes how Trenton streets should be adjusted to meet this vision.
• In 2022, the City finalized a plan for redesigning intersections around the Trenton Transit Center that would make them easier to bike through and walk across, and secured funding for construction.
• Later in 2022, City Council passed the Complete and Green Streets ordinance requiring new projects to follow the Trenton Complete Streets Design Handbook.
• Our Streets: A Trenton Bike Plan for All will build on these plans and marks an essential step toward the vision of a more bikeable and walkable city. 

Trenton Vision Zero 

Vision Zero is a strategy to end all traffic deaths and serious injuries. Between 2016 and 2020, 31 people lost their lives on Trenton’s roads. 13 people in 2021 and 11 people in 2022 died in car crashes. Crashes that cause death or serious injury are not "accidents" because crashes are preventable. Humans make mistakes, but a mistake on the road shouldn't cost us life and limb. The road can and should be designed to do more to protect us. The forthcoming Trenton Vision Zero Action Plan, facilitated by DVRPC, will provide analysis and data-driven strategies to help Trenton city government and outside partners eliminate severe crashes on Trenton’s streets. Creating a High Injury Network (HIN), or a map of all crashes between 2016 and 2020, revealed that 75% of all crashes resulting in death or serious injury occurred on just 16% of Trenton streets. By tackling these specific streets, Trenton can drastically reduce serious crashes and save lives.

Trenton Trails Plan 

Several regional and national trails travel through the City of Trenton, making it an important hub for current and future trail users. Trenton also has a network of existing, upcoming, and conceptual local trails that connect to parks, neighborhoods, and other destinations. Some of these trails serve as recreational facilities but many also provide critical access to transit, employment, retail, education, and other essential services. The Stacey Park Trail, The Delaware River Heritage Trail, The Assunpink Greenway and the D&R Canal trail are just a few of the trails that the City of Trenton and its many partners in the region are currently working on to expand and improve. The Trenton Trails Plan formalizes this interconnected network and will serve as the foundation for future work on specific projects.

Greenways

• East Coast Greenway (ECG) - The City worked with the East Coast Greenway Alliance on a signage plan for the ECG through Trenton. Installation of the signs occurred the summer of 2009.
• Assunpink Greenway - The City received a $15,000 planning grant from the Dodge Foundation to design a trail linking the Assunpink Greenway to the Trenton Train Station. Initial designs were presented in Spring 2010.

Trails

• Delaware River Heritage Trail - August 28, 2008 - City staff met with staff of the Delaware and Raritan (D&R) Canal Commission to review needed street markings for where the D&R canal towpath comes from Bordentown and meets up with the proposed Delaware River Heritage Trail in Trenton.
• Capital to the Coast Trail - September 15, 2008 - The City has been working with volunteers to discuss the route and progress on the Capital to the Coast trail in Trenton. The Capital to the Coast Trail is a bicycle trail that passes through two counties and numerous municipalities from Manasquan at the Jersey Shore, to our Capital City.