NEWARK – Union County Freeholder Daniel P. Sullivan was elected Chairman of the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA) at today’s Board of Trustees meeting. The NJTPA oversees regional transportation planning and annually authorizes more than a billion dollars in federal surface transportation funding for 13 counties in northern and central New Jersey.
“Transportation planning and investment is central to the future of Union County and the rest of our region,” Sullivan said. “But we face many fiscal and economic challenges and must do more with less. I look forward to guiding the NJTPA over the coming year as we work to make our transportation system smarter and more efficient during these challenging times.”
The other members of the NJTPA Executive Committee will continue to serve in their current positions: Morris County Freeholder Gene Feyl, First Vice Chairman; Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise, Second Vice Chairman; Hunterdon County Freeholder Matt Holt, Third Vice Chairman; and Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo, Secretary.
At the meeting, the NJTPA also welcomed three new members of the Board of Trustees: Bergen County Executive Kathleen Donovan, Monmouth County Freeholder Thomas A. Arnone and Warren County Freeholder Jason Sarnoski.
Sullivan has served on the NJTPA Board of Trustees since 2000. He is currently Vice Chairman of the NJTPA’s Freight Initiatives Committee, and he previously served as NJTPA Chairman in 2006 and 2007.
A lifelong resident of the City of Elizabeth, Freeholder Chairman Sullivan has served on the Board of Chosen Freeholders since 1995, when he was appointed to complete a one-year term. He was then elected to three-year terms in 1995, 1998, and 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010.
The NJTPA is the metropolitan planning organization (MPO) for 13 northern New Jersey Counties. Under federal legislation, MPOs provide a forum where local officials, public transportation providers and state agency representatives can come together and cooperatively plan to meet the region’s current and future transportation needs. It establishes the region’s eligibility to receive federal tax dollars for transportation projects.
The NJTPA Board consists of one local elected official from each of the 13 counties in the region (Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren), and the cities of Newark and Jersey City. The Board also includes a Governor’s Representative, the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Transportation, the Executive Directors of NJ Transit and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and a Citizen’s Representative appointed by the Governor.
The NJTPA Board consists of one local elected official from each of the 13 counties in the region (Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren), and the cities of Newark and Jersey City. The Board also includes a Governor’s Representative, the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Transportation, the Executive Directors of NJ Transit and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and a Citizen’s Representative appointed by the Governor.