Residents urge removal of old pedestrian bridge Locals claim bridge is hazardous to the community and students BY KATHY CHANG Staff Writer Residents say the old and rusted pedestrian bridge that crosses from Chalet Drive to East Prospect Avenue is not only unsafe, but the bridge brings noise, vandalism, alcohol, drugs and litter. WOODBRIDGE — Residents who live on Chalet Drive want the old and rusted pedestrian bridge that crosses from their street to East Prospect Avenue taken down. “Kids hang off the bridge and draw graffiti on the Plexiglas on the outside of the bridge,” said Joan Brana, who has lived on Chalet Drive for 37 years. “It’s not safe. NJ Transit has replaced the Plexiglas twice since it was put in within the past year. There are rust holes in the flooring of the walkway and the outside ledges of the frame are completely rusted away. You can see the sunlight through the holes. It’s dangerous and it’s horrible to look at.” The Plexiglas was put in to replace the green material that had been in the walkway for the last 35 years at the urging of Ward 1 Councilman Charles Kenny because of concerns from residents that the walkway was too dark and unsafe. PHOTOSBYKATHY CHANG “Even though the Plexiglas was installed, the safety issue still exists,” said Brana. “The bridge has a metal plate on both sides of the walkway that obstructs the complete view of the walkway. A pedestrian cannot see if someone is stooped down between the metal plates waiting for a victim until you get to the top of the stairs and look into the walkway. Residents say the bridge, which was built in 1971 and is the only pedestrian walkway without a train stop on the Northeast Corridor, is not only unsafe, but the bridge brings noise, vandalism, alcohol, drugs and litter into their quiet neighborhood of two-story residences. “I’ve seen kids do drugs and drink alcohol on the bridge,” said Brana. “I’ve even seen adults go up on the bridge and do drugs. Then they urinate over the bridge. It’s gotten worse over the years and the only way to fix it is to remove it as soon as possible.” Residents, who have been passing around a petition for removing the bridge since Oct. 10, will hand the petition to Mayor John E. McCormac and the Township Council in the next week. Kenny is in the process of taking a survey from residents in the surrounding area on whether they want the pedestrian bridge taken down or kept up. “So far I have 24 residents who have said they wanted the bridge removed,” said Kenny. “I have had six residents who are for keeping it.” Kenny said he wants to wait until after Jan. 1 to get all the results back from the survey. “NJ Transit has told me if they could take down the bridge, they would have taken it down yesterday,” said Kenny. “However, I don’t want to remove it and then have a whole other neighborhood come to me and ask me why the bridge was taken down. I want to wait until I have more results from the residents.” Kenny said if the decision were to remove the bridge, he would wait until the end of the school year to do it. “I know kids use the bridge to go to the schools,” he said. “As for providing busing for the children if the bridge were taken down, I will have to talk to [Schools] Superintendent Vincent Smith.” Residents said they have counted that seven high school students use the bridge daily to go to school. “We are not talking about elementary school children,” said Brana. “We are talking about high school children. I believe the bridge should be taken down during winter recess rather than wait until the summer. The families of the seven high school children should be given a notice that the bridge will be taken down. The bridge is extremely rusted and it’s a safety hazard.” Ruth Borne, who has lived on Chalet Drive for 35 years, said she and her husband have been afraid to go out of their front door. “I live directly across the street from the bridge,” she said. “Our homes have been pelted with rocks and eggs. We shouldn’t have to live like that. We are proud citizens and shouldn’t be treated like second-class citizens. I have spoken to three people who say they want to move. Removing the bridge has been long overdue. These teenagers or whoever are hanging off this bridge and spraying graffiti. Are we waiting for a tragedy and the township to suffer a multimillion-dollar lawsuit? We can’t put this off, we need to get the bridge down.” Brana and other residents said NJ Transit and the Township Council have been cooperative and helpful. “We just want the bridge to disappear,” she said. “I am told that it will take eight weeks to take the bridge down. We would like to have the stockade fence that used to be in place put up and more lighting should be installed. This will improve the appearance of our neighborhood.”