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Chief William Cicchetti, President Sgt. Richard Maxwell 1st Vice-President (Ret.) Chief Tony Parenti, Editor MEETING NOTICES: Board Of Directors: The next Board meeting is at the call of the President. Next Regular Business Meeting: WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2008, beginning at 10:00 AM, at the Somerville Elks Club, Route 28 (Union Ave.), Bridgewater, NJ  PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE: Please check to be sure your membership dues is paid for the 2008. Check the end of the top line on your mailing label. If it doesn't say 08, chances are your dues have not been paid. If the label indicates 08po, this means we received a purchase order but payment has not been made. Delinquent E-mail subscribers will be notified via e-mail. Anyone not paying dues by the end of June risk being dropped from membership, will not receive the newsletter, current traffic safety alerts, or upcoming training programs. Indicators point to declining safety belt use during nighttime hours. Although violations may be difficult to observe please make a concerted effort and encourage your patrol force to do the same. The Summer months are upon us and the high price of gasoline means NJ drivers will be spending more time on local roads instead of taking long out-of-state trips. This will place a heavy burden on NJ traffic law enforcement. Aside from checking for safety belt compliance, look for drunken drivers, teens complying with GDL laws, speeders, and following too close. I wish you and yours a safe and enjoyable summer and I'll see you in September. Stay Safe, Bill ARE YOU MISSING OUT ON IMPORTANT TRAFFIC SAFETY ALERTS?: If you received this newsletter by postal mail the answer is yes. We send members receiving the newsletter by e-mail traffic safety alerts and timely messages as we receive them from a variety of top-notch sources. To subscribe to the e-mail services send your request by e-mail to tparenti@comcast.net. You can subscribe to the e-mail or postal mail service; either one, we cannot send both. For your protection we keep our e-mail list secure and will not divulge it to anyone under any circumstances. Please consider using this service, our goal is to have the largest e-mail contact list in NJ traffic safety. Note our new address and telephone number on the mast above. 
MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION FEE DEBACLE: Legislators failed to support a law dedicating a $3 increase in motor-vehicle-registration fees to fund new State Police classes and to replace the aging Medevac helicopters. The last fee increase was in 2006 when about half of the $59 million went to outside sources including general expenses, police salaries and police vehicles; but no new Medevac helicopters were ordered. This year none of the funds raised from drivers is expected to go to new police classes, and about half would go to the Medevac program. A legislator was quoted as saying; "This is why people are so against fee increases and charging things, because the money doesn't go where it's supposed to be." Later adding, "It's another broken promise, and it shouldn't happen." TRAINING OPPORTUNITY: The Transportation Safety Resource Center announced the opening of the Traffic Signal Design I class and they're accepting registrations for the June class. If you missed the opportunity to take this class the first time around, now is your chance! When: June 16, 17, 18, 2008 (Monday - Wednesday) Where: CAIT Lecture Hall (Directions: http://www.tsrc.rutgers.edu/contacts/directions/) Cost: $260 per person (includes PDH credits and continental breakfast each day). This is an excellent class for anyone designing or who seeks approval for traffic signals. Traffic Signal Design I is the first class in a series. They encourage people to attend this class prior to taking additional classes. Forward questions to Janet Hansen (jchansen@rci.rutgers.edu). 
As of May 18, 2008 there were 207 fatalities recorded on NJ roads compared to 249 during the same period in 2007, A DECREASE OF 42 DEATHS. Note: These figures are only preliminary
So far this year there were 119 Driver deaths, 35 Passengers, 46 Pedestrians, 07 Pedacyclists, and 18 Motorcyclists. There were 207 fatalities in 197 crashes. MEMORIAL DAY FATALITIES: There were 5 roadway deaths during the 2008 Memorial Day Weekend compared to 7 during the same weekend last year. The significant difference this year, aside from the 2 less bodies, is none of the fatalities involved passenger cars. There were 2 Motorcycle Driver deaths, 1 in a Commercial Vehicle, 1 Pedalcyclist, and 1 ATV Driver. WIRELESS AMBER ALERTS: The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), and the wireless industry launched the Wireless AMBER Alerts initiative. Wireless subscribers whose phones are capable of receiving text messages and whose carrier participates in the program are able to receive a geographically specific free text message when an AMBER Alert has been issued in their area. With more than 60 percent of Americans owning wireless phones this makes the Wireless AMBER Alert initiative capable of substantially reaching the vital emergency services. If there are any questions or concerns, please contact your cellular telephone subscriber. Sign up for Wireless Amber Alerts at www.wirelessamberalerts.org 
MOTORISTS ARE STILL USING CELL PHONE WHILE DRIVING: Despite the widespread ban on cell phone use while driving, a recent survey indicates nearly three-quarters of distracted drivers in crashes were talking on the phone. NHTSA says there are 115 road fatalities each day in the United States and distracted driving causes 80 percent of them. The study says 60 percent of teens used their phones while driving, 78 percent of 18- to 30-year-olds, and 80 percent of those 31 to 44 years old. In a study published last year by Harris Interactive, 92 percent of Americans said driving while talking on the phone was as bad as getting behind the wheel of a car after having a few drinks. GASOLINE PRICES REDUCING VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED: All time high gasoline prices has drivers adjusting their driving routine which in turn is tumbling the average amount of vehicle miles traveled. This could be good because any drop in vehicle miles traveled usually translates to fewer roadway deaths. High gasoline prices also are hurting states that depend on gasoline taxes to feed their coffers. Even toll road owners, public and private, are complaining saying the high cost at the pumps is hurting toll road revenue harder than it is hurting gas tax revenue. The private toll road operators claim their data shows traffic on the Indiana Toll Road fell 10.2 percent in May compared to May last year. Traffic fell 13 percent on the Chicago Skyway. The trend in vehicle miles traveled and less gallons consumed equates to lower tax revenue nationwide, NJ included. Sooner or later this will likely catch the eye of Governor Corzine and possibly ignite him to move ahead with his unpopular toll hikes. PLATE COVERS TO DEFEAT PHOTO ENFORCEMENT: A company in Pennsylvania sold plate covers and sprays intended to hide registration plates from being photographed. The Pennsylvania Attorney General threatened legal action against the company claiming the sprays and plate covers were "dubious" both in terms of effectiveness and legality. According to the settlement terms the company agreed to stop selling in PA and paid a $20,000 fine that goes to expanding the budget of the Attorney General's office and a $5,000 fine to the state treasury. 
ALWAYS WEAR YOUR SAFETY BELTS AND BULLETPROOF VEST SALUTE OUR WAR HEROES - NEVER FORGET THE DEPARTED NEXT MEETING SEPTEMBER 3rd - SOMERVILLE ELKS CLUB |