NJ Seatbelt Crackdown Launches In 134 Communities: See Where

NEW JERSEY — Buckle up, New Jersey: The annual "Click It or Ticket" campaign began today, with close to $800,000 awarded to local police for enhanced seat belt enforcement. The campaign runs through June 4.

Grant money from the Division of Highway and Traffic Safety (HTS) went to 134 New Jersey law enforcement agencies to fund the campaign, said Attorney General Matthew Platkin. The money pays for increased road patrols, seat belt checkpoints, and other enforcement initiatives during the campaign.

During last year's "Click It or Ticket" campaign, participating law enforcement agencies issued 8,373 seatbelt violations across the state, said officials. Also during last year's enforcement campaign, officers wrote 3,315 summonses for speeding and made 278 arrests for impaired driving.

"Law enforcement agencies take a “no-excuses” approach to seat belt enforcement," the AG's office said. The maximum penalty for a seat belt violation in New Jersey is a $46 fine, added AG Platkin's office.

The most recent data from the Division of Highway and Traffic Safety shows that 47 percent of all people killed in motor vehicle crashes were not wearing a seat belt. In 2021, 160 unrestrained people died in New Jersey roadway crashes.

And over the past five years, close to one quarter of all unrestrained occupants killed in motor vehicle crashes were between the ages of 25 and 34, said state officials.

“Too many New Jerseyans needlessly lose their lives due to motor vehicle-related fatalities, and reducing these preventable deaths is a top priority for my office,” said Platkin. “Our campaign will help raise awareness of this critical and proven way of preventing serious injury or death in the event of a motor vehicle crash. Seat belts save lives – it’s that simple.”

Here is the full list of law enforcement agencies receiving grant money, and how much they received, per the AG's office:

Atlantic County

• Absecon: $7,000
• Brigantine: $5,250
• Hamilton: $8,750
• Hammonton: $7,000
• Linwood: $7,000
• Longport: $3,500
• Mullica: $7,000
• Northfield: $3,500
• Pleasantville: $4,200
• Ventnor: $4,200

Bergen County

• Carlstadt: $7,000
• Elmwood Park: $7,000
• Englewood: $7,000
• Fair Lawn: $7,000
• Fairview: $7,000
• Fort Lee: $8,750
• Garfield: $7,000
• Hackensack: $8,750
• Lodi: $7,000
• North Arlington: $7,000
• Old Tappan: $7,000
• Paramus: $7,000
• River Vale: $7,000

Burlington County

• Burlington Township: $7,000
• Pemberton: $7,000

Camden County

• Gloucester: $8,750
• Haddon Heights: $8,750
• Winslow: $10,500

Cape May County

• Avalon: $7,000
• Lower: $7,000
• Middle: $7,000
• North Wildwood: $7,000
• Wildwood: $7,000
• Wildwood Crest : $7,000

Cumberland County

• Vineland: $10,500

Essex County

• Belleville: $7,000
• Bloomfield: $7,000
• Glen Ridge: $7,000
• Livingston: $7,000
• Montclair $10,500
• Nutley: $7,000
• South Orange: : $7,000
• West Caldwell: $7,000
• West Orange: $7,000

Gloucester County

• Clayton: $1,400
• Deptford: $7,000
• East Greenwich: $2,800
• Franklin: $5,600
• Glassboro: $8,750
• Greenwich: $1,680
• Harrison: $2,800
• Logan: $7,000
• Mantua: $4,480
• Monroe: $8,750
• Paulsboro $2,800
• Pitman: $2,800
• Rowan University: $4,480
• Washington: $7,000
• Westville: $4,480
• Woodbury; $5,600

Hudson County

• Bayonne: $8,750
• Hoboken: $8,750
• North Bergen: $10,500
• Secaucus: $7,000
• Union City: $14,000

Hunterdon County

• Clinton Town: $1,885
• Clinton Township: $,1885
• Flemington: $1,885
• Frenchtown: $1,885
• High Bridge: $1,885
• Holland: $1,885
• Lambertville: $1,885
• Lebanon: $1,885
• Tewksbury: $1,885
• West Amwell: $1,885

Mercer County:

• East Windsor: $7,000
• Ewing: $7,000
• Hamilton: $8,750
• Hightstown: $7,000
• Hopewell: $7,000
• West Windsor $7,000

Middlesex County:

• Carteret: $7,000
• Metuchen: $7,000
• Middlesex Borough: $7,000
• Monroe: 8,750
• North Brunswick: $7,000
• Perth Amboy: $7,000
• Plainsboro: $7,000
• South Brunswick: $7,000

Monmouth County:

• Colts Neck: $7,000
• Freehold Borough: $7,000
• Freehold Township: $7,000
• Highlands: $7,000
• Howell: $7,000
• Manalapan: $7,000
• Middletown: $7,000

Morris County:

• Boonton Township: $7,000
• Morristown: $7,000
• Parsippany $8,750

Ocean County

• Bay Head: $7,000
• Berkeley: $7,000
• Ocean Gate: $7,000
• Lakewood: $10,500
• Point Pleasant Borough: $7,000

Passaic County

• Haledon: $7,000
• Little Falls: $7,000
• Passaic: $10,500
• Paterson: $14,000
• Pompton Lakes: $7,000
• Prospect Park: $7,000
• Woodland Park: $7,000

Somerset County

• Bedminster: $1,885
• Bernards: $1,885
• Bernardsville: $1,885
• Bound Brook: $1,885
• Bridgewater: $1,885
• Far Hills: $1,885
• Franklin: $1,885
• Green Brook: $1,885
• Hillsborough: $1,885
• Manville: $1,885
• Montgomery: $1,885
• North Plainfield: $1,885
• Peapack and Gladstone: $1,885
• Raritan: $1,885
• Somerset County Sheriff: $1,885
• South Bound Brook: $1,885
• Warren: $1,885
• Watchung: $1,885

Union County

• Linden: $7,000
• Plainfield: $7,000
• Roselle: $7,000
• Roselle Park: $7,000
• Union: $8,750

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that seat belt use reduces the risk of serious injury or death in a crash by 45 percent.

“New Jerseyans need to grasp how important it is to buckle up, every time, anywhere you are going,” said Michael J. Rizol Jr., Director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety. “Taking a few seconds to buckle yourself in reduces your risk of fatal injury in a serious crash by fifty percent. There is no excuse for making the wrong decision, and if you do, you can expect to be pulled over and ticketed.”