And improve traffic lights and intersections. But they've been promising improvements to Bergen County's roads and rails for decades. The problem is, promises don't ease the pain of a 90-minute commute. But there's no room or political will to build new ones, and barely enough money to keep the aging roads and bridges we have from crumbling. Spillover traffic from clogged highways turns neighborhoods into racetracks and threatens the livelihoods of downtowns and Main streets.
Trains are no alternative because they all point toward Manhattan.
Bergen County planning Director Chet Mattson hears those gripes daily. That's why he and other public officials hope to improve Bergen County's quality of life by improving its deluged transportation network. Fran would like to believe that life on the roads will someday get better. She loves her job here. Loves her house and her neighborhood.