NORTH BERGEN – Law enforcement officers from the North Bergen Police Department are cracking down on distracted drivers during April as part of the national “UDrive. UText. UPay.” enforcement campaign.
Beginning April 1 and running through April 21, the high visibility law enforcement initiative will target motorist who engage in dangerous distracted driving behaviors such as talking on handheld cell phones and sending text messages while driving.
“The UDrive. UText. UPay campaign to be carried out locally throughout North Bergen is key to keeping our roadways safe,” said North Bergen Chief of Police Robert Dowd. “We encourage North Bergen drivers to stay off their cell phones while they’re behind the wheel, not only throughout this campaign but year-round in order to keep our roads as safe as possible.”
Despite the fact that using a hand hell cell phone or texting while driving is illegal in New Jersey, the practice appears to be widespread. In a 2014 survey conducted by the FDU PublicMind Poll for the Division of Highway Traffic Safety, 68 percent of respondents said they “very often” see people driving and talking on a handheld cell phone, and 41 percent of respondents said they “very often” see drivers texting.
“Distracted driving is a serious issue on our roadways,” said Gary Poedubicky, acting director of the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety. “The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that in 2012 alone, 3,328 people were killed in distracted driving crashes and an estimated 421,000 people were injured in motor vehicles crashes involving a distracted driver.”
April is National Distracted Driving Month. The campaign is modeled after successful high visibility enforcement campaigns such as Click It or Ticket and Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.
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