Residents speaking during the public-comment period urged Bergen County to take more aggressive actions to reduce bicycle and pedestrian deaths and serious injuries, pressed the board to adopt a Vision Zero approach and a green-streets policy, and asked commissioners to ensure transparency and follow-up on local implementation.

Why this matters: Speakers said the Local Safety Action Plan (LSAP) identifies the county's worst corridors but that recommended treatments ' such as paint, signage and lights ' do not match the urgency of aggressive driving and the frequency of serious crashes. Commenters asked whether municipalities would be allowed to implement LSAP recommendations on county roads and whether the plan's status could affect grant applications.

Public comment highlights: Chris Snowe, identified in the record as a member of the public, told the commissioners the plan "identifies the 13 worst corridors and intersections regarding fatalities and serious injuries," and urged the county to "adopt the Vision Zero action plan and complete a green street policy." He criticized the plan's near-term recommendations: "The recommendations don't match the urgency," and asked that at least one commissioner attend local implementation committee meetings and report back to the public because residents "rely on you to represent us and share our feedback."

Another resident who identified himself as Philip Gabe Hafiz described a dangerous intersection at the Saddle River County Park entrance on County Route S-79 near Glenrock Turnpikes, praised recently installed rectangular rapid flashing beacons (RRFBs) at a nearby County Route 79 intersection and asked, "How long will we wait before taking action? Must we wait until someone is seriously injured or killed before addressing this issue?" He suggested additional measures including driver education and stronger enforcement of existing laws and requested consideration of installing RRFBs at the park entrance.

County staff response and status report: The county administrator said the administration held a public LSAP workshop on 05/28/2025 with 77 attendees and described the LSAP as establishing a framework "for achieving a goal of 0 deaths and serious injuries on county and municipal roads by the year 2050." The administrator noted that the governor has a parallel "Target 0 Initiative" and that experts at a New Jersey Association of Counties meeting discussed the challenge of balancing engineering, enforcement and education.

Discussion vs. decision vs. direction: The board heard public comment and county staff provided status information on the LSAP, but the transcript records no formal vote or directive adopting Vision Zero or a green-streets policy at this meeting. Commenters requested that commissioners attend local implementation meetings and consider passing resolutions in support of state-level or policy actions, but the meeting produced no formal county action on those requests.

What was not decided: The transcript does not show the county adopting new enforcement programs, allocating implementation funding, or approving specific intersection installations during the meeting. Questions raised by speakers about whether municipalities may implement LSAP recommendations on county roads and whether the LSAP will affect future grant pursuit were left open for staff follow-up.

Next steps and transparency requests: Public commenters asked the commission to provide clearer information on who is responsible for implementing the LSAP, on the sequence of improvements linked to grant awards, and on channels for public reporting after local implementation committee meetings. The county administrator's mention of the May 28 workshop provides a public record of outreach and the LSAP's stated 2050 framework; further decisions on program adoption, funding and enforcement would require future commission action or staff assignments.