Trenton residents should get TTF funds despite filing failure
Hold up, Gov. Phil Murphy.
The state of New Jersey has some of my hard earned money invested in the Transportation Trust Fund.
Just because Mayor Eric Jackson and his less than intrepid staff failed to apply for funding should not mean that Trenton residents have no claim to monies.
City motorists paid 23 cents per gallon and whether Mayor Jackson delivered an application or continued his service as “The Brown Recluse”, some of those ducats should funnel toward this capital city.
Gov. Murphy attempts highway robbery and any jury in the world would recognize that Trenton holds an entitlement despite another Jackson blunder.
Since Nov. 1, Trenton and state drivers have paid into this trust fund that collects dollars for road, bridge and rail work across the state.
The 23-cent gas tax hike, plus, increases in diesel fuels and non-motor fuels, will produce $1.23 billion annually.
New Jersey from a 14.5cent per gallon tax — the second-lowest in the U.S. — to 37.5 cents — the seventh-highest and Trenton residents will not receive a bloody nickel.
TTF revenue will finance an eight-year, $16 billion transportation program and federal dollars pushes total funding to $32 billion.
The municipal share of available funding increased from $200 million to $400 million and Trenton will not attract one cent.
Government malfeasance should not factor into Transportation Trust Fund payouts or a city such as Trenton or any municipal with lackluster leadership runs the risk of serious deterioration.
A previous offering warned of major road rough ups due to the combination of rain, freezing temperatures and unseasonable warmth.
Surely, Murphy and an astute mathematician can develop an equitable formula for Transportation Trust Fund distribution.
Trenton crumbles as streets break apart on Mifflin St., a hellish two-block ride between Chambers and Washington St.; on Gladstone Ave. off South Olden Ave.; and on Division St. where motorists must avoid a giant pothole in the 200 block prior to a highway to hell excursion in the 300 block.
Heed this second warning regarding a city set to fall apart at the seams.
Meteorologists predict consecutive days of near-70 degrees temperatures followed by four days of rain, conditions that will break Trenton roads into pieces.
Infrastructure matters in the safety and well-being of citizens.
Gov. Murphy should understand that some of the Transportation Trust Fund money in his pocket belongs to hard working Trenton residents.
Give us our cut.