Safer streets

You shouldn’t neglect to wear a seatbelt while driving or travel at excessive speeds. You shouldn’t use a cell phone while behind the wheel or be distracted in other ways.

If you don’t adhere to those obvious rules of the road, the Middlesex Police Department is attempting to remind you to do so.

The MPD launched a traffic safety campaign in early February, attempting to educate the public on the need to use seatbelts, adhere to speed limits, ditch the cell phone while driving and stay focused on the road.

Those four offenses typically contribute to fatal motor vehicle accidents.

Police Chief Matt Geist gave a presentation on the campaign at the Borough Council’s Feb. 27 meeting. The MPD also gained air time on News12 when the cable television station aired a segment on the safety effort the following day.

By concentrating on the four specific offenses, the MPD seeks to heighten driver awareness and reduce the possibility of fatal accidents. 

Statewide, fatal accidents and the number of people who died in them were down last year. A total of 621 died in 585 fatal crashes last year. The were 646 fatal crashes with 689 people perishing in 2022.

 In Middlesex Borough, there were 383 traffic accidents last year with 113 injuries. The borough had one fatal accident in both 2023 and 2022.

“In my opinion, one fatal crash is one too many,” Geist said.

The MPD will use a combination of education and enforcement during the campaign. Social media, NIXLE alerts and roadside electronic message boards will be used to impart driver safety messages. 

Geist told the council it’s incumbent on the MPD to conduct “more active and visible enforcement.” The chief told the council that “directed patrols” will be used to address poor driving behaviors.

“Through this campaign, we hope to have impact on poor driving behaviors in Middlesex and throughout the state of New Jersey,” Geist said.

There is a “definite need” in Middlesex to address speeding and other traffic offenses, said Mayor Jack Mikolajczyk.

“Some of these side streets are like mini-highways,” the mayor added. 

“A lot of people are just not paying attention,” Mikolajczyk said. “We need to educate the public, because it’s all ages.”

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