Traffic Crackdown Launched In East Orange As Crashes, Injuries Rise

EAST ORANGE, NJ — East Orange police are launching a traffic crackdown at several spots throughout the city in an effort to reduce crashes and pedestrian strikes, authorities recently announced.

As part of the new crackdown, East Orange police will identify and address all traffic violators – including pedestrians – with a combination of “education and summonses.” Authorities said the initiative will mainly target drivers who commit the following infractions:

• Speeding Vehicles and Trailers
• Failure to Yield to Pedestrians
• Distracted and/or Impaired Driving
• Parking and Seatbelt Violations
• Phoning/Texting While Driving
• Double Parking

Boyd said traffic safety is a “shared responsibility” for pedestrians, too. He encouraged pedestrians to obey traffic signals, stay on sidewalks when possible, wear brighter clothes when walking at night and to “be aware of drivers.”

The traffic crackdown comes amid a rise in pedestrian fatalities and injuries, according to the East Orange Department of Public Safety.

Public Safety Director Maurice Boyd said in 2022, there were 2,274 accidents, six fatalities and 98,905 summonses. So far in 2023, there have been 177 accidents, one fatality and 11,567 summonses issues since January.

The city’s most recent pedestrian fatality occurred last month, when local resident Karl Smith was hit by a car while crossing Freeway Drive. In the wake of his death, Assemblywoman Britnee Timberlake held a news conference to highlight the hazardous and often-fatal conditions on Freeway Drive in East Orange and Orange.

• See Related: Fix This Deadly Stretch Of Road In The Oranges, Assemblywoman Says

At that news conference, East Orange Mayor Ted Green agreed that there is a need for changes that would slow down traffic on Freeway Drive. Over the past five years, the city’s Department of Public Works has installed more speed bumps, one-way signage and additional stop signs to slow down traffic throughout the city’s five wards, he said.

The Department of Public Safety also recently purchased eight ATS traffic message boards which have been strategically placed around the city. The boards alert drivers when they are traveling at an unsafe speed, especially in school zones and areas of high pedestrian traffic.

“When we step out of the house, we all have somewhere to be, but speeding through lights, not yielding to pedestrians in crosswalks and cutting off other drivers is never worth the risk,” Green said.

“One fatality is too many and 18 in 10 years is unacceptable,” the mayor continued. “Over the past four years, we’ve had an average of 248 accidents every year on Freeway Drive alone.”

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