On June 17, 2019 EZ Ride’s Bike & Pedestrian Team in partnership with the Elmwood Park School District, the Elmwood Park Police Department, NJTPA’s Street Smart NJ Program, and the NJ Devil’s mascot, known as “NJ,” launched the Street Smart NJ campaign safety messages for drivers and pedestrians at the Gilbert Elementary School.

A short video about how to cross streets safely was presented to more than 250 Grade K-3 students. We taught the children our four safety rules, “Stop, Look, Listen & Wave.” Several of them volunteered to come up and practice the rules on our mini-roadway along with NJ, who modeled the safe way to cross a street.

We also premiered the brand new Street Smart NJ Public Service Announcement starring Ken Daneyko, former NJ Devil’s ice hockey player and three-time Stanley Cup winner. In the video, Daneyko emphasizes the importance of walking safely in busy New Jersey and the danger of being a distracted driver or pedestrian.

The Street Smart NJ messages in the campaign were:

For more information, please contact:

Lisa Lee

(201) 939-4242 ext. 123

[email protected]

Michael had lived in Spring Lake, Summit and New York City before settling down in Montclair. He doesn’t drive and has witnessed the changes in the transportation services available in town.

He joined Ryde4life in August 2017, and he uses it for trips outside of Montclair.

For Michael, being a member of Ryde4Life makes him feel independent and in charge of his transportation without having to own a car.  He likes Ryde4Life because its available  on-demand, and he saves a lot of money compared to local taxi services.  He said he rates Ryde4Life “a 20+” and that he is a “satisfied customer.”

 

 

For additional information or to sign up for the program, call:

(866) 208-1307, Option 4

or visit

www.Ryde4Life.org

In March 2019, Essex County teamed up with EZ Ride to provide rides for older adults using the Ryde4Life program. The pilot program was designed to augment the county paratransit systems either because of capacity constraints, requests for rides outside of normal operating hours or delayed requests for a ride.

The process is simple –  TransDev, the county’s paratransit operator provides EZ Ride with a list of passengers with their pick-up and drop-off locations a day before they are required. The following day, the riders call EZ Ride directly to request a ride, and the EZ Ride Coordinator uses Lyft/ Uber to provide the service. At the end of the month, EZ Ride bills the county the actual cost of the ride and an additional $2.50 per trip.

Funding for the pilot program was provided in equal amounts by NJ Transit and Essex County. In the last three months, EZ Ride has provided more than 800 rides to county residents.

“The program has been an immediate and overwhelming success. And the number of rides has gradually increased to about 40 trips a day. Our goal in Essex County is to eliminate the transportation barrier and improve the quality of life for our seniors. We are delighted with the services provided by EZ Ride.

We look forward to making it a regular feature on our menu of transportation options,” said Michael Vieira, Essex County Director of Transportation Services.

The Ryde4Life program is very popular with older adults as no reservation is required, and riding in a sedan is far more comfortable than a minibus. However, the average cost of the ride is about $13, which poses a financial burden for most of our riders who live on a fixed income and cannot always afford the trip. The success of the Essex County program was primarily because the rides are free.

The Ryde4Life program primarily serves – older adults, passengers with disabilities, and lower-income residents living in areas with little or no public transportation.

Typically, NJ Transit commuters only pay about 50 percent of the operating cost of the ride. We want to offer the same 50 percent discount to our riders in the Ryde4Life program.

For additional information about the Ryde4Life program, please contact:

Barbara Friedman

(201) 939-4242 ext. 223

[email protected]

On May 17, 2019, the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT), in partnership with the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA), announced $5.8 million in Safe Routes to School (SRTS) infrastructure grants to eleven communities.  Seven of these eleven winners are EZ Ride’s municipal and school partners, who were awarded a total of $4.2 million.

 

In Bergen County:

In Essex County:

In Monmouth County:

EZ Ride partnered with schools, parents, students, community leaders, police, and other city officials in these communities to identify the barriers that prevented walking or biking in the neighborhood. The schools also documented how students get to and from school – bus, bike, car, walk, or public transit. And EZ Ride prepared a School Travel Plan with recommendations on improving the bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure around the school, which was a requirement for all communities seeking infrastructure grants.

“We believe that the Safe Routes to School Infrastructure Grant will help improve the pedestrian and traffic safety not only for our students but also for our residents. We are a township where residents will be healthier, happier, and better connected when they feel they can travel safely around the town.

Dr. Gerald Fitzhugh II, Ed.D, Superintendent, Orange Public Schools continued, “School district staff, city officials, parents, students, and the EZ Ride bike and pedestrian team collaborated to assess and gather the data for the walkability audit. The Travel Plan Report written by EZ Ride identified the traffic safety issues we noted during the audit and provided specific recommendations for us to implement and to highlight in our grant application. During the process, the entire school community was galvanized around improving pedestrian and traffic safety issues in the township.

We look forward to working further with the City of Orange Township, EZ Ride, and NJ Safe Routes to Schools to develop opportunities for safer travel to our district schools.”

For more information about our bike and pedestrian programs, please contact:

Lisa Lee

(201) 939-4242 ext. 123

An $11.7 million, state-funded Bloomfield Avenue Bridge rehabilitation project will replace the bridge superstructure, which is in “poor condition.” The bridge is located on Bloomfield Avenue/CR506 over NJ TRANSIT’s Montclair Rail Line near Maple Avenue in Montclair.

The project will be advanced in stages to minimize the impact on motorists. EZ Ride partnered with IEW Construction Group to provide shuttle service for pedestrians during sidewalk closures. The service is free, and it’s provided seven days a week: Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and on Saturdays and Sundays from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The shuttle operates continuously, picking up at Bloomfield Ave and Highland Ave, Bloomfield Ave and Pine Street, and Bay Street Train Station.  Additionally, if needed, riders can flag the shuttle along Woodland Ave.

The shuttle service began on June 29 and is expected to continue operating until December 2019.  The overall construction on the bridge is expected to be completed by summer 2020.

Riders can obtain additional information about the service by contacting:

Veronica Gallegos

(201) 939-4242 ext. 1

[email protected]

Shuttle Map

BNE Real Estate Group is a family-owned business with an established track record of developing thousands of luxury homes, more than one million square feet of commercial space, and manages nearly  8,000 apartments.

In spring 2019 they began leasing operations at their latest venture, One Harrison, located along the Harrison waterfront.  In addition to several lifestyle amenities, BNE partnered with EZ Ride to offer their residents free shuttle service to and from the Harrison PATH station.

“The shuttle is a huge draw for residents who commute using the PATH train service at Harrison. It seamlessly connects our community with public transportation and eliminates the hassles and expense of owning a car. EZ Ride serves not only One Harrison but also two more of our residential communities – Monarch in East Rutherford and Water’s Edge in Harrison,” said Seth Cohen, Executive Vice President – Head of Operations at BNE Real Estate Group.

The Harrison PATH station was redeveloped at a cost of $256 million to include glass-enclosed, weather-protected station entrances; modern elevators widened stairs and escalators to platforms; and, possibly the most critical feature, extended platforms to accommodate longer, 10-car trains. EZ Ride operates five different shuttle services from the Harrison PATH station for various clients.

For more information about setting up shuttle services at your facility, please contact:

Kinga Skora

(201) 939-4242 ext. 131

[email protected]

We are adjusting our pricing to more accurately reflect the value riders get from our services and to ensure the financial viability of the program.  As a result, EZ Ride will charge a flat fee of $2.40/ mile, and there will be no additional pick-up fee. The increase will be effective September 15, 2017.

The Flex-T Mobility program was launched in 2009 with a grant from the Kessler Foundation to provide rides for people with reduced mobility using volunteer drivers in Monmouth County.  The program has grown and now serves more than 100 riders mostly in Monmouth County, and the total number of rides provided has doubled over the last two years from about 9,000 in 2015 to 18,000 in 2017. We have replaced the volunteers with professional drivers who had the skill sets to meet the needs of the riders we were attempting to serve which increases the cost.

Our 100+ customers live in about 50 different towns and travel to more than 250 different destinations. A large number of origins and destinations make it difficult for our clients to share a ride and if they do, it increases the time they spend in the car traveling. Currently, the average trip length is about 7.7 miles and takes about 24 minutes. We are able to accomplish it by using a larger fleet of vehicles and more drivers which again increases the cost.

To simplify our billing operations, we now require our customers to provide us with a credit/ debit card. Similar to EZ Pass, we will initially deduct $50 from the credit/debit card to open the account and fund the rides. As and when the account balance drops to $25 or below; we will replenish the account balance by adding $50 from the credit/ debit card. All active members will receive a monthly statement of rides provided and their cost.

EZ Ride is a qualified provider for the New Jersey Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) which provides funding for services that assist adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to live as independently as possible. Each individual who uses DDD’s services has a plan of care developed with their Support Coordinator that details how they want to live and their transportation needs are described in this document.

EZ Ride is working closely with the DDD client and their Support Coordinator to ensure that they are aware of the price increase and are getting the transportation they need. We appreciate our riders’ continued participation in our Flex-T program and look forward to serving their transportation needs into the future.

For additional information, please contact:

(201)939-4242 or email [email protected]

Pearl and Sheila live in East Orange.  They used a combination of rides from friends and family, taxis, and buses to get around town.  They discovered the Ryde4Life program while traveling back and forth to the hospital to visit a family member.  Not having to depend on anyone for a ride was very appealing to them and they signed up for the program. Now they use Ryde4Life in conjunction with public transportation to get to the hospital, for shopping, doctor appointments, and social functions.

“We love the flexibility and the fact that there is no exchange of money or arguing over the fare.  The drivers are great, cars are clean, and they arrive within five minutes. We enjoy the freedom of using the service as needed and we enjoy the luxury of someone else out there who looks out for any billing discrepancies. EZ Ride takes care of that easily and quickly.”

For additional information or to sign up for the program, call:

(866) 208-1307, Option 4  or visit  www.Ryde4Life.org

July 27, 2016

During May and June, over 400 students in grades 3-5 learned the ABCs of biking safety at the Amerigo A. Anastasia School (AAA), the Gregory School, and the George L. Catrambone School (GLC) in Long Branch.  EZ Ride’s Safe Routes to School (SRTS) team made Bike Safety Presentations (BSPs) at these three elementary schools to encourage and teach students how to safely bike to and from school.

Children learn the alphabet and their ABCs in school and these are considered the building blocks that are essential for successful reading.  In the same way, children who learn the ABCs of biking safety learn the building blocks that are necessary for safe bicycling.

Children who attend our Biking Safety Presentations learn about:

Additionally, the SRTS team explains the benefits of biking and walking to school to students and their teachers. Biking is a great way for students to get part of the daily 60 minutes of exercise that children need each day to stay healthy.  Brain research has shown that students who walk or bike to school are more awake and alert in class, they do better on tests, and they retain information better than students who are driven to school.  We talk about the importance of drinking lots of water when cycling and also about eating healthy foods including more fruits and vegetables to give children energy to help them ride their bicycles for the long term.

By the way, in case you were wondering what the ABCs of biking safety are…

The equipment that all cyclists need to ride in NJ includes a white front light, a red rear taillight, and a bike bell or horn to audibly signal. The most important safety skills that kids need to learn are:

Next…the SRTS team will be heading back to the Gregory School and AAA School on July 27thand July 28th to teach in the summer school programs in Long Branch.  We will be making more walking and biking safety presentations to the summer school students and conducting Bike Skills Rodeos where students will get a chance to practice safe riding skills such as scanning, signaling and turning on a safe child-friendly course.  We will also be providing free bike helmets to students who do not have one.

For more info, please contact Lisa Lee at [email protected] or call 201-939-4242.