Paul Ligeti and Alice Eltvedt are this year’s winners of the WWBPA’s scholarship to graduating high school seniors.
Paul, who graduated from North and is headed to the University of Michigan, impressed us with his Eagle Scout project: an 11-mile bike route of historic West Windsor sites, with a well-researched website that describes the story of each site and red markings at each spot. Paul has led two rides of his route for the WWBPA, and all have been impressed with his work.
Paul Ligeti
Alice, who is going to Princeton after graduating from South, led by example as she rode her bicycle to the West Windsor pool. The racks have been overflowing!
Alice Eltvedt
The scholarships are one of two sets of annual awards from the WWBPA to honor those who share our vision of a bicycle and pedestrian-friendy community. We also selected three winners of our community service awards and presented them at our annual meeting in March.
Mike Viscardi, a project development? planner, has been a fantastic contact for the WWBPA at New Jersey Transit. It has only been with Mike’s help that we have been able to add bike racks and lockers on two occasions.
Michael Ogg, a former trustee, has raised our awareness of the needs of the disabled when making improvements to our sidewalk network. We thank Michael for all his contributions.
And West Windsor Township, beginning with Francis Guzik, the township’s engineer, has added so many bike lanes, filled in many gaps in the sidewalk network and added safe pedestrian crossings in the past few years. Thank you!
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The West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance is sponsoring a free 11-mile bike ride of historic West Windsor on Saturday, July 28. Meet at 9 a.m. at the kiosk that describes the route at the corner of South Mill Road and Village Road East, next to the World War II memorial. The ride will be led by Paul Ligeti, who designed and signposted the route for his Eagle Scout project.
You may know that the Martians ?landed? in Grover?s Mill, but did you know West Windsor has two stops on the Underground Railroad? Or that Woodrow Wilson would bike from Princeton to walk around Grover?s Mill Pond? Join us to hear about these and more fun facts.
Helmets are required. Children under 13 must be accompanied by an adult.
The ride is the second in our series of casual summer rides. Our third is planned for mid-August and will offer something for both bikers and walkers.
Eagle Scout Paul Ligeti sent us this report on our Nov. 13 ride along the route through town that he developed, mapped and marked. About 15 people participated–a perfect size given the stops along the way for explanations of the sites.
The rescheduled inaugural ride of the West Windsor Interpretive Historic Bike Trail took place on Nov. 13. Unlike the wintry weather of the original date, we were met with a mild, pleasant fall afternoon.? I was happy to see the riders enjoy the trail, which is the result of my Eagle Scout project in West Windsor?s Troop 66 and two years of work.? The 11 mile-long trail, which I designed with historical and traffic considerations in mind, winds through much of the town. My troop and I laid red plaques in front of many historically significant sites, including the Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church, the Schenck Farmstead and Grovers Mill.
The highlight of Sunday?s ride was a stop near? Grovers Mill to hear a local resident regale us with a vivid description of the days in his youth during the infamous October 1938 War of the Worlds radio broadcast. He also recounted subsequent commemorations of the event attended by the likes of governors and the writer of the original broadcast.
Anyone interested in riding the trail, or just learning more about the history of West Windsor, is invited to check out the website http://wwhistoricbiker.weebly.com/.? As an online companion to the trail, it provides a map of the route and historical background on the sites with the markers and dozens of others, as well.
Thank you WWBPA for arranging the inaugural ride.
And thank you, Paul, for creating it!
Riders meet at the kiosk in Dutch Neck that explains the trail
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The WWBPA’s snowed-out 11-mile ride of historic West Windsor sites has been rescheduled for this Sunday, Nov. 13, at 2 p.m.
The route has been created by Paul Ligeti as part of his Eagle Scout work. We will meet at the kiosk at the trail?s starting point, next to the World War II memorial in Dutch Neck (corner of Village Road East and South Mill Road). Paul will say a few words about his project before the ride begins, and there will be a stop about midway to hear more from a local resident about West Windsor and “War of the Worlds.”
The ride is free and open to all, but helmets are required. While much of the route is on roads with bike lanes or on quiet residential streets, it does include a portion of Cranbury Road. Children under 12 should be accompanied by an adult. Please bring a signed copy of the wwbpa waiver form.
The weather forecast at this point calls for sun, but dress in layers just in case the sun isn’t shining as strongly as we’d like.
The miserable weather forecast for Saturday means we’re postponing our bike ride of historic West Windsor sites. We’ll see if our rain date, Nov. 13, treats us better.
Join the West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance and Eagle Scout Paul Ligeti for the inaugural bike ride of Paul?s 11-mile tour of historic West Windsor sites. Paul?s route points out many places beyond the imaginary Martian landing in War of the Worlds. Did you know West Windsor has two stops on the Underground Railroad? Or that a double murder in Dutch Neck in 1910 led to the first use of the electric chair in Mercer County? Woodrow Wilson used to bike from Princeton to walk around Grover?s Mill Pond, another stop on the tour. The red markers you see around town are stops on this route, which you can find on http://wwhistoricbiker.weebly.com.
We will meet at the kiosk at the trail?s starting point, next to the World War II memorial in Dutch Neck (corner of Village Road East and South Mill Road) at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29 (rain date is Sunday, Nov. 13). Paul, a member of Troop 66, will say a few words about his project before we start. We will stop around the halfway point to hear more about War of the Worlds ? broadcast almost to the day 73 years ago, on Oct. 30, 1938.
While much of the route is on roads with bike lanes or on quiet residential streets, it does include a portion of Cranbury Road. Helmets are required, and children under 12 should be accompanied by an adult. Everyone should bring a signed copy of the waiver form available here: wwbpa waiver form. For more information, email wwbikeped@gmail.com.
Enjoy a few photos from Saturday’s ribbon-cutting for the West Windsor Historic Bike Trail, a project by West Windsor resident Paul Ligeti, with a supporting cast of his Scout Troop 66. The kiosk that explains this 11-mile loop is next to the World War II memorial in Dutch Neck. Read the article in the Trenton Times too.
Join Eagle Scout Paul Ligeti, township and scout officials for the ribbon-cutting of Paul’s 11-mile route through historic West Windsor at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, July 30, at the trail’s starting kiosk next to the World War II memorial in Dutch Neck (corner of Village Road East and South Mill Road).
Paul started this project to get his Eagle Scout award, but it has turned into a labor of love. His website not only has a map but plenty of detail about West Windsor that goes beyond War of the Worlds. Did you know West Windsor has two stops on the Underground Railroad? Or that a double murder in Dutch Neck in 1910 led to the first use of the electric chair in Mercer County? And that Woodrow Wilson would bike from Princeton to walk around Grover’s Mill Pond? The red markers you see around town are stops on this route.
Great job, Paul!
The WWBPA intends to team up with Paul for a group ride once the weather cools down. Watch our website and Facebook page for details.
Paul Ligeti of Troop 66, sponsored by Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church, is creating a bike route for his Eagle Scout project. The trail will pass by many of West Windsor’s historic sites, which are described on his project website. Please support Paul’s effort!
Please remember that when riding on the roadway, a bicyclist has all the rights and responsibilities of a motorist, including following traffic signals and stop signs, etc. Do not ride against traffic! Besides being the law, following the rules of the road has been shown to be safest for everyone, since motorists and bicyclists behave in a common predictable way. Enjoy your ride!
Monthly meetings are held at 7 p.m. on the second Thursday of the month via Zoom due to Covid. We will eventually resume meeting in the West Windsor Municipal Building. Email us at wwbikeped@gmail.com if you would like the Zoom code.
Find us at the West Windsor Farmers Market (Vaughn Drive parking lot) from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. every other Saturday from May through Halloween.
Paul Ligeti of Troop 66, sponsored by Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church, is creating a bike route for his Eagle Scout project. The trail will pass by many of West Windsor’s historic sites, which are described on his project website. Please support Paul’s effort!