Red Light Camera Requiem

New Jersey’s State Government and 23 of its municipal governments will recover a morsel of integrity at midnight tonight when state sanctioned theft in the form of red light cameras cease to operate at 73 intersections.  New Jersey’s Red Light Camera Program, authorized as a five year pilot during the lame duck session of the 2006-2008 legislature and signed into law by Governor Jon Corzine, expires tonight.

The fact that the Red Light Camera Program has not been renewed is due in large measure to the efforts of Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon and his staff.  Their efforts have been heroic.

O’Scanlon and Co. have been relentless in monitoring the Red Light Camera Program and telling the truth about it. They have hired independent experts to investigate complaints and document fraud within the program.  They have sorted through data that has regularly been obfuscated by the red light camera companies (and bureaucrats friendly to them) to reflect improved safety conditions at RCL intersections where in fact conditions had often worsened.   They have worked hard in getting the word out about the program’s failure and corruption. They have countered expensive advertising campaigns by the red light camera companies and countered expensive lobbyists working the halls of the Statehouse, without the benefit of the profits the red light camera companies stole from the motoring public to fund their efforts.

In thwarting the Red Light Camera Program’s renewal, O’Scanlon has proved himself to be “the real deal”….a leader who fights for the right thing because it is the right thing. He is an example of what a “public servant” should be.

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As red-light cameras go dark, was it a boon for safety or a bust?

What happened to Al Lovey of Wharton might be the poster child for what critics say went wrong with the state red-light camera program. Lovey said he was making a left turn at a green light at the camera-monitored intersection at Market Street and Route 21 in Newark when he stopped in mid-turn to let a… Read the rest of this entry »

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Intermittent lane closures near West Front St. Bridge

Motorist should expect delays between 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Detours will be posted 

photo via visitmonmouth.com

MIDDLETOWN, NJ – Beginning today, there will be intermittent lane closures between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Hubbard Avenue and other roads on the Middletown side of the West Front Street Bridge.

The work being is done by the County in preparation of the Jan. 2 closure of the West Front Street Bridge.

“This work needs to be done in advance of the closure so that the local roads can adequately handle the detours that will be put into place during the prolonged closure,” said Freeholder Thomas A. Arnone, liaison to the Department of Public Works and Engineering.

On Jan. 2, work will begin to connect the new bridge to the Middletown and Red Bank shorelines. This work will take approximately four months to complete.

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Why was Chris Christie sitting with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones at the Eagles game?

PHILADELPHIA — Well this isn’t going to help Gov. Chris Christie win any votes in the Garden State. Christie was seen sitting with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones during the Eagles’ game on Sunday night, a move will not go over well with Eagles fans. Here is the photo of Christie taking in the game with… Read the rest of this entry »

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Buyer’s remorse: Loans impacting grant money for Sandy victims

NEW YORK (AP) — When Superstorm Sandy left Denise Erickson’s home with a collapsed foundation, a loan from the Small Business Administration looked like the best deal in town. She got more than $150,000 from the SBA to help fix her family’s Bellmore home, but the loan has left her with a $651 monthly payment and… Read the rest of this entry »

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Obamacare enrollment deadline looms

This time, the Obamacare deadlines actually mean something. New and returning enrollees have until late Monday to sign up for health insurance on the federal online exchange and be covered by Jan. 1 – a hard deadline and stark turnaround from last year, when glitches on HealthCare.gov blurred pre-Christmas deadlines. Instead of fretting over a website,… Read the rest of this entry »

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The holidays are around the corner

Happy Holidays

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Government Averts Shutdown; $1.1T Spending Bill OK’d

U.S. Senator Mike Lee, R-Utah, walks to the Senate floor during a long series of votes, many on procedural matters or to confirm members of the Obama administration, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington Dec. 13, 2014.Reuters/Jonathan Ernst

UPDATE 10:10 p.m. EST: The U.S. Senate Saturday voted 56-40 to approve a $1.1 trillion “cromnibus” spending bill that funds the federal government through September. The measure now goes to President Obama for his signature. The vote came after Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, tried to force a procedural vote on the president’s executive order on immigration… Read the rest of this entry »

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Crazy Christmas Light Show returns to Jersey Shore neighborhood this weekend

Crazy Christmas Light Show 2013 Portions of the over-the-top annual Christmas Light Show that attracts thousands of visitors to a quiet Wall Township neighborhood each year. WALL TOWNSHIP – An over-the-top holiday tradition, complete with rocking music, strobe lighting and 20-foot-high flames, is scheduled to begin its 2014 show schedule this weekend. The annual Christmas Light… Read the rest of this entry »

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President Obama should reconsider phasing out aircraft at Lakehurst, Smith says

LAKEHURST — When President Obama visits Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst on Monday to thank American service members, U.S. Rep. Chris Smith wants the Commander in Chief to use the time to also reconsider plans phase out certain refueling aircraft. In a letter sent Friday to Obama, Smith (R-4th Dist.) said the “misguided proposal” of phasing out KC-10… Read the rest of this entry »

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