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County secures $4.3M federal funds for Central Avenue signal upgrades; commissioners push Complete Streets alignments
Summary
Essex County announced a $4,295,351 federal reimbursement agreement for adaptive signal and intersection improvements along Central Avenue (38 intersections). Commissioners pressed for Complete Streets features and pedestrian safety measures for school areas; a related time-extension was approved for a Valley Street project due to equipment lead times.
The Board of County Commissioners approved a federal reimbursement agreement of $4,295,351 to support signalized intersection improvements and adaptive-signal optimization along Central Avenue, a corridor stretching from MLK Boulevard in Newark to Valley Street in West Orange.
David Antonio of the Department of Public Works said the federal agreement will reimburse the county for engineering and construction costs to upgrade 38 signalized intersections along Central Avenue with optimization and adaptive traffic-signal features. He described the funding source as CMAC (Congestion Management and Air Quality), federal money aimed at improving air quality by promoting efficient vehicle flow.
Commissioners sought assurances that the signal upgrades would be congruent with the county’s Complete Streets and Safe Streets for All planning; Commissioner Gill and Vice President Cooper asked that pedestrian safety features—high-visibility crosswalks and upgraded school crossing treatments—be prioritized where appropriate. David Antonio said the Safe Streets for All safety action plan is being finalized and that candidate projects from that plan will be considered for federal Safe Streets funds.
Public Works also requested and the board approved a time extension for the Valley Street intersection project, moving its completion from July 2026 to January 2027 because of national shortages and long lead times (70–72 weeks) for certain traffic-signal materials.
Commissioners voted to approve the agreements and authorizations for multiple public-works contracts in a block vote; several vendors were introduced to explain scopes of work for traffic engineering, park improvements and other capital projects.
