278 Tickets Written During Route 539 Safety Enforcement Campaign

A monthlong targeted enforcement campaign on Route 539 designed to drive home the need to drive safely resulted in 278 tickets being issued and 10 arrests along the road, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.

Initiated in August in response to a string of serious crashes, including four in the span of a week in late June and early July, the safety enforcement initiative along Route 539 -- which stretches from Little Egg Harbor and Tuckerton in the southeast corner of Ocean County and travels through Stafford, Barnegat, Lacey, Manchester and Plumsted before crossing through Jackson -- targeted speeding and improper passing, as well as a host of other dangerous driving behaviors, said Al Della Fave, spokesman for the prosecutor’s office.

Improper passing was cited as the cause in two of the four July crashes. Prosecutor Joseph D. Coronato said that from January 2013 to July 31, there were 11 fatal crashes along the stretch.

“The initiative raised significant awareness among the motoring public regarding the safety issues along CR539, but more important it has coordinated efforts by Ocean County law enforcement, engineering and road departments to take important steps toward making commuting along CR539 safer,” Coronato said.

During the targeted enforcement, 652 vehicles were stopped, with nearly one-third -- 278 -- receiving summonses, Della Fave said. Speeding summonses topped the charts at 82, followed by 75 non-moving violations issued, 70 other moving, 35 seat belt summonses and two arrests for driving while under the influence, he said.

The participating departments were happy to observe that the majority of motorists were choosing to drive responsibly. There were no fatalities or accidents involving serious injury during the period, Della Fave said.

Construction is expected to begin in the spring to make major safety upgrades to the two-lane highway that has a 55 mph speed limit for most of it and is used by local seniors, commuters traveling to the Trenton area, tourists looking to vacation along the Jersey Shore and a large number of commercial trucks.

The project, estimated to cost $3.4 million, will be funded by the Federal Highway Administration’s High Risk Rural Road program.