By Trenton Cycling Revolution A white bicycle stands silently at the seldom-used bicycle rack at the rear entrance to city hall. Adorned with flowers in the handlebars and spokes, it is also covered in the names of cyclists killed on New Jersey’s roads within the last few years. Some of the names are familiar like Julie Galezniak, killed in Chesterfield township on a ride and the Gaudreau Brothers, hockey stars killed in their prime by a drunk driver. Others, like Victoriano Choz did not make national news, a bright young Trenton High School Graduate, musician, and mechanic struck at Chambers and S. Clinton on October 26th. What they also have in common is that their deaths could have been prevented through better road design, enforcement of existing laws, and safer driving. This “Ghost Bike” was installed during a group ride led by Trenton Cycling Revolution during the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, to inspire the employees and lawmakers entering City Hall to be leaders in the Safe Streets Movement. Apparently too provocative for the policymakers of Trenton, the lock was promptly cut and the bike was removed from view so that no one would have to be troubled by the sign that read, ”Mayor and City Council – Convene the Safe Streets For All Committee, Adopt Vision Zero & the Trenton Bike Plan – Prevent more deaths on our streets” Complete Streets, signed into law in 2022 committed the City to reshape its roadways to serve all road users, designing them not just for cars, but for people walking, biking, and boarding. Despite this commitment on paper and the City’s numerous plans, little has been done to implement and actually re-shape the streetscape in Trenton. In February of this year, the council voted unanimously to create the ‘Safe Streets for All Steering Committee’, a group of Ward representatives, business owners, and community leaders who could use their on-the-street knowledge to guide the city as it moves toward the goal of eliminating traffic deaths. We are still waiting for the first meeting to be scheduled. Sadly these ordinances seem to be just empty promises, a box checked to say progress has been achieved while in reality no action has been taken to protect the friends, aunts, cousins, and children, who become victims of completely preventable crashes on Trenton roads. Fatal crashes in New Jersey are up 15% over 2023 and Mercer County has lost 31 people to crashes on our roads; this bucks the national trend of decreasing traffic fatalities from an all-time high during the pandemic. Just ask yourself, in the last few years, has driving or biking in Trenton become safer or more dangerous? No benefit of the doubt can be given to our city leadership as they drive on the same roads we bike and walk on, and see the same bad behavior from drivers carelessly operating several tons of steel with no regard for human life. Even after years of reports of pedestrian and cyclist fatalities, our city government seems content to be home to the “Most Dangerous Intersection in America.” Who will be the person to lead this charge from the city’s side? A common refrain from the administration is “that’s a state road, or county road which we don’t control” but that excuse has worn thin. Follow any county or state road outside city limits and it is magically in better shape. While their elected officials were working to fix road conditions in their towns, our city government has been engaged in a years-long contest to determine which of them is best at kicking the can down those same roads. Yes, infrastructure projects take time but the blueprints already exist. A 200-page Complete Streets Design Handbook authored by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission in 2021 sits on a desk somewhere, waiting to be implemented, hopefully preventing the next fatality. Until then, the ghost bike has been re-installed across the street, at a safer distance from our legislators, who we hope never have to deal with a loved one being lost to a crash. Trenton Cycling Revolution is an all-volunteer 501c3 non-profit, originally founded in the 1990s. Our mission is to create a safe and healthy environment for bicyclists in Trenton through education, engagement, advocacy and infrastructure.