Yesterday, New Jersey DOT finally released its project list for the $500 million bond authorization that will appear before voters on the Nov. 2 ballot.

$250 million is dedicated to local bridge repair. The other $250 million will devote $80 million to transit projects (see last week's edition) and $22 million to bike, pedestrian and rail freight projects. $45 million will go to bridge work on the state highway system. $75 million will be used for road work (mostly repaving). The remaining $28 million will fund project development studies and operational improvements on roads.

Overall, the NJDOT lists contain no highway expansion projects and represents a strong step toward a capital program that emphasizes highway maintenance and investment in alternatives to cars and trucks. A "yes" vote will send a strong signal to Trenton that the public approves of this approach.

Still, the bond issue is not the last word on NJDOT spending. There are still no clear guidelines about how and where NJDOT can use other funds at its disposal. The bond act is a tool for temporarily avoiding the issue of how to finance NJ's Transportation Trust Fund. Directing transportation investments so that they to fight sprawl and car dependence will still be on reformers' agenda when Trenton decides to address the latter. Click here to review NJ DOT's project list.