Pedestrian Safety Upgrades Now On Front St. At Red Bank Hospital

RED BANK, NJ – With 1,600 pedestrians trying to cross Front Street at Riverview Medical Center every day, Monmouth County has added some safety improvements there, the county said Thursday.

County Route 10 - better known as Front Street - gets lots of foot traffic in the hospital area.

“Recent studies indicated that approximately 1,600 pedestrian crossings occur at this location daily, and the goal is that these improvements will provide safety to both pedestrians and drivers,” said County Commissioner Director Thomas A. Arnone.

Arnone is liaison to the county Department of Public Works and Engineering.

Recent enhancements included:

• The replacement of the pedestrian beacons with the Rapid Flash LED strobes.
• Pedestrian signage on both sides of the crosswalk facing both directions of travel on Front Street.
• Installation by the county of rumble strips and the “PED X-ING” pavement markings in advance of the crosswalk in both directions to emphasize to drivers they are approaching the heavily used crosswalk.
• The existing crosswalk striping and left turn arrow pavement markings at Globe Court and the Medical Center entrance were also reinstalled.

Throughout Red Bank, the Police Department has its own ongoing pedestrian safety program from a grant from the New Jersey Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

There have been pedestrian "decoys" posted to test if motorists are stopping for pedestrians at crosswalks, as well visible policing of speed limits and pedestrian rights of way.

The department has hosted many pedestrian and bicycle safety presentations at Red Bank schools, and last year posted approximately 100 temporary pedestrian safety signs throughout the borough of Red Bank.

Pedestrian safety is taken seriously in a town known for its walkability.

The Safety Administration statistics show 179 pedestrians were killed in New Jersey in 2020 alone, representing 32 percent of the motor vehicle fatalities in the state that year.

The project by the hospital was initiated after Riverview Medical Center shared with Arnone how drivers were not complying with pedestrian rights of way at the crosswalks, hence the study by county traffic engineers and the improvements, the county said in a news release.

“Monmouth County traffic engineers will continue to study the need for additional long-term measures to further improve access to the medical facilities,” Arnone said.