Brielle Area To Have Heavy DWI Patrols For Rest Of The Summer

BRIELLE – Police in 104 New Jersey communities are ready to crack down on drunken driving for the rest of the summer. One of them was Brielle, which received $5,500.

The Division of Highway Traffic Safety has announced grants totaling more than $540,000 that will be used by local law enforcement agencies to crack down on drunk and impaired drivers as part of the national initiative, “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.”

Law enforcement agencies across New Jersey received funds to staff saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints during the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign, which runs from August 16 through September 3, according to a DHTS news release (see list of towns below).

More than 300 additional agencies, including the New Jersey State Police, are expected to join the annual statewide traffic safety effort aimed at reducing highway crashes.

“The risks of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol are enormous and the consequences are tragic,” said Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal. “With rideshare apps and other forms of public transportation readily available, there’s no excuse for anyone to get behind the wheel impaired.”

In 2017, driving while intoxicated – either under the influence of alcohol or drugs – was listed as the major contributing factor in more than 25 percent of the 591 fatal crashes that occurred on New Jersey roads that year. Those 158 alcohol/drug-related crashes killed 174 people.

During a five-year period between 2013 and 2017, 678 individuals were killed in alcohol-related crashes in the state.

“Impaired driving remains one of the biggest traffic safety threats in New Jersey and combatting it is a year-round priority in our state,” said Eric Heitmann, director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety. “As we head into the final weeks of summer and the busy Labor Day driving weekend, our officers will be stepping up those efforts, working longer hours and increasing sobriety checks to keep intoxicated drivers off the road. If you’re out there driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, the odds are we’re going to stop you and arrest you.”

Last year, law enforcement agencies statewide dedicated an estimated 6,200 total enforcement hours to the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign, including 20 fixed sobriety checkpoints. During the 3-week initiative, more than 1,196 impaired driving arrests were made and an additional 4,764 speeding summonses and 3,194 seat belt citations were written.

Here is the list of participating towns:

Atlantic

• Atlantic City $5,500
• Egg Harbor Township $5,500
• Galloway $5,500
• Hamilton Township $5,500
• Hammonton $5,500
• Mullica $5,500

Bergen

• Bergenfield $5,500
• Fort Lee $5,500
• Garfield $5,500
• Hillsdale $5,500
• Lyndhurst $5,500
• Mahwah $5,500
• Maywood $5,500
• New Milford $5,500
• Paramus $5,500
• Teaneck $5,500

Burlington

• Bordentown Township $5,500
• Cinnaminson $5,500
• Delran $5,500
• Evesham $5,500
• Medford Lakes $5,500
• Mount Laurel $5,500
• New Hanover $5,500
• Palmyra $5,500
• Riverside $5,500

Camden

• Gloucester Township $5,500
• Haddon Heights $5,500
• Pennsauken $5,500
• Pine Hill $5,500
• Stratford $5,500

Cape May

• Lower Township $5,500
• Middle Township $5,500
• North Wildwood $5,500

Cumberland

• Bridgeton $5,500
• Vineland $5,500

Essex

• Bloomfield $5,500

Gloucester

• Deptford $5,500
• East Greenwich $2,200

Gloucester

• Elk $2,200
• Glassboro $5,500
• Greenwich $1,760
• Harrison $2,200
• Logan $2,200
• Mantua $5,500
• Monroe $2,200
• Pitman $2,200
• Washington $5,500
• Westville $2,640
• Woolrich $2,640

Hudson

• Guttenberg $5,500
• Hoboken $5,500
• Jersey City $5,500
• Kearny $5,500
• Union City $5,500

Hunterdon

• Clinton $5,500
• Lebanon $2,640
• West Amwell $2,640

Mercer

• Ewing $5,500
• Hamilton Township $5,500
• Hightstown $5,500

Middlesex

• Dunellen $5,500
• Edison $5,500
• Monroe $5,500
• North Brunswick $5,500
• Old Bridge $5,500
• Sayreville $5,500

Monmouth

• Allentown $5,500
• Brielle $5,500
• Eatontown $5,500
• Howell $5,500
• Middletown $5,500

Morris

• Chester Township $5,500
• Hanover $5,500
• Jefferson $5,500
• Morristown $5,500
• Parsippany-Troy Hills $5,500
• Rockaway Borough $5,500
• Rockaway Township $5,500

Ocean

• Berkeley Township $5,500
• Jackson $5,500
• Seaside Heights $5,500

Passaic

• Bloomingdale $5,500
• Clifton $5,500
• Passaic City $5,500
• Paterson $5,500
• Pompton Lakes $5,500
• Woodland Park $5,500

Salem

• Carney's Point $5,500

Somerset

• Bedminster $2,640
• Branchburg $2,640
• Green Brook $2,640
• Hillsborough $2,640
• Manville $2,640
• Montgomery $2,640
• Somerville $2,640
• South Bound Brook $2,640
• Warren $2,640

Sussex

• Franklin Borough $5,500
• Hopatcong $5,500
• Sparta $5,500
• Vernon $5,500

Union

• Linden $5,500
• Union Township $5,500

Warren

• Hackettstown $5,500