By Avi Gutfreund. In recent months, there seems to have been a resurgence in the regularity with which the NJ State Police come to Lakewood and begin ticketing non-stop for even the slightest infractions. Residents have complained in the past about how Lakewood seems to be singled out for targeting by the State Police, with some even accusing them of targeted harassment against a town which is comprised of mostly Jews. Recently, a Lakewood police officer was accused by many in town of lobbying the State Police to specifically target the Lakewood community, although those allegations remain (as far as I know) uncorroborated.
For their part, the State Police say the decision to have their police officers in Lakewood is not about targeting specific populations, but rather that they send their officers to communities where their data shows them a higher than average number of collisions, pedestrian deaths, and dangerous driving behavior.
The problem with their claim is that the areas in Lakewood with high fatality rates are very obvious, including the Route 70 and Route 9 in the area where it passes downtown Lakewood. Yet we aren’t seeing a larger State Police presence in those areas; their presence spans across the town, including in areas with low levels of accidents and pedestrian fatalities. So I think their reasoning is questionable at best and definitely an insufficient explanation for their activity in Lakewood.
But let’s assume for a moment that the State Police are correct in their assessment that Lakewood is a more dangerous place to drive or cross a street than the average New Jersey town and that is why we see them so often and that they are targeting town in a fair and judicious manner. The fact remains that they are simply treating a symptom rather than the root issue.
Lakewood has grown exponentially in the past dozen or so years. New developments seem to be popping up every other week, and dozens of new residents are moving to Lakewood each month. What hasn’t changed are the roads in town. They remain geared towards a small to midsized town, not a borderline city with 100,000 plus residents. A drive which should take no longer than 5 minutes can literally become a 30 minute plus infuriating excursion because the roads simply cannot handle the amount of vehicles in town. I pack lunch before heading down the 9.
When the infrastructure in town is so outdated, the natural outcome is more frustrated drivers becoming aggressive, thereby creating hazardous conditions and putting other drivers and pedestrians at risk. So while the data may be showing higher rates of collisions and pedestrian deaths in Lakewood, I believe it to not be due to naturally aggressive driving or careless pedestrians, but rather due to the impossible conditions drivers are subjected each and every day.
If New Jersey truly wanted to reduce collisions and injuries in Lakewood, they shouldn’t be sending in the State Police, they should be sending in funds and road pavers to bring our infrastructure up to speed.
(TLS welcomes your letters by submitting them to letters@thelakewoodscoop.com)
I agree with you, if the infastucture would be up to par that will help with the aggressive driving.
However it’s no excuse for cellphone use and distracted driving as well as failure to signal.
There is no logic behind your posits. Road repairs and highway funding don’t control a drivers foot on the gas pedal, or a driver refusing to come to a full stop when required, or a driver not using their turn signals. You claim about the majority of accidents occur on Rt 9 and Rte 70 may be true, yet you have no citations to support your claims. You can blame aggressive driving on the infrastructure but that is just poppycock. Drivers should have the ability to stay calm under pressure. If they don’t they should stay off the road. If a drive that once took 5 minutes now takes 20, plan your travel accordingly. You see to care little about personal accountability and want to explain away the poor driving habits of Lakewood residents. FWIW I haven’t driven in Lkwd in 20 years, it’s worse than big city driving.
If the world were angelic as you speak you’d be right. But the responsibility of the state is to work with reality not hypothetical correctness. Reality is that frustrated drivers drive more aggressively. Period.
How about we stop letting every builder make cul-de-sacs and only make through streets wide enough to handle parking on BOTH sides of the street and allow 2 cars to pass without having to dodge around each other. That would be a first start, then see if any of the current cul-de-sacs built can be made into open roads.
I welcome ANY assistance in deterring the dangerous driving conditions in Lakewood. This past Friday, I was in three near miss accidents in a one hour period from five to six PM. I was driving only 1/2 mile from my home to a friend’s. This reckless disregard for other drivers on the road is appalling. If the NJSP can have any impact on this….bring in more!
I agree. Its come to the point where I avoid Lakewood at all cost. I’ve had too many close calls in the past.
Fully agree. It’s come to pickuach nefesh levels.
We all see multiple accidents every day wherever we go.
There is no courtesy, no respect, and most of all,very little knowledge about the rules of the road.
I’m so excited to see my auto insurance premiums rising.
Why is this an issue? They are here to help the town drive safer, and Ienforce driving safety.
wild drivers need to have their cars taken away for 1 week. that will solve the problem. there is no excuse for the reckless driving habits we witness daily.
Amil Zola, if you haven’t driven in Lakewood in 20 yrs. then keep your mouth shut. The letter writer is 100% correct with everything they wrote. The slew of recent serious accidents that mostly happened on route 70 and other non local streets and mostly on Shabbos are proof that the state police is not responding properly to the situation. Why don’t we see them around on Shabbos? Why did one of the recent crackdowns only begin Saturday evening when so many of these fatal accidents occurred Friday evening and Saturday morning? Hmmm…I’m not gonna scream anti-semitism but it sure smells very fishy. The infrastructure is 10-20 years behind, the state can’t even get their act together to put a simple Turing arrow at 2 of the busiest intersections in town but the state police is always available and ready for lakewood, it’s sickening and if there was a way to sue against such a targeting id like to know how. Obviously if you don’t do anything wrong there’s no need to worry about them but when there is obvious targeting involved then having to worry about doing the slightest infraction (unintentionally of course) can make any driver more tense and apprehensive. With all the great chachamim in this town that know how to turn a square block into dwelling for 50 families, why hasn’t anyone figured out a fix for the infrastructure?
State police are doing there job and they don’t jist go after just one race or reglion if anyone on the rd isn’t maintaing proper driving rules they will pull anyone over which is a great thing I haven’t heard of many bad accidents since the state police been around so to all who think they are out only targeting certain reglions or race think again they r doing their job I applaud them for stepping up and coming into ocean county areas try to get speeders and other violators because ocean county seems to b the worst lately
@Resident and Driver,
A guys wife calls him in his car to tell him to be careful because she heard theres a guy driving the wrong way. “One guy?!”, he replies, “the whole highway is going the wrong way”.
If you were in 3 near misses in 1 hour either your story is made up (an hour to drive a half mile?), or me thinks you might be like the guy in the story
I said the three near misses (and 1/2 mile drive) occurred during a one hour period….not that it took me one hour to drive there. Sorry if I confused you. I did not look at the clock….but was one the road “during” that one hour time period. Believe me…it happened. My hands were shaking by the time I arrived. I stopped a couple of times to just gather myself before driving on.
@Amil Zola,
His logic is actually completely sound. He never took away the blame from anyone doing something wrong. But if their point is to save lives (and not just to make money) then they should focus on what is the biggest contributor to the problem
The writer is right on the money. WE NEED BETTER SAFER ROADWAYS.
Infrastructure is one thing. Policing is another. There is no connection. If you are looking to blame traffic violations than address the true cause: the disconnect between the driver and the brakes, accelerator, steering wheel, pedestrians and traffic controls. How about disconnect the phone. Its obvious that there’s always a need for improvement in every situation. Rationalizing whining about it is just not helpful.
Fullagree: I may not have driven in Lkwd in 20 years but that doesn’t keep me from being exposed to the poor driving habits of it’s citizen, as a passenger or pedestrian. For those wanting better infrastructure, how willing are you to pay for it? It may be time to get serious about city planning.
Sam: State police aren’t city planners. But they can enforce driving laws that are frequently violated.
I was pulled over by an undercover state trooper on Clifton back in January. He pulled me over because I beeped him and was tailgating. I’ll admit I was frustrated, but instead of getting angry, I focused on being grateful that there are policemen who can enforce safety -even if they have other intentions. The bottom line is, is that I have become a more alert, cautious driver due to the ticket. I’m grateful there are cops around and overall, they do their job well. Remember, no ones perfect and among a barrel of apples there will always be a few bad apples. ?
Actually that is the whole idea. They are ticketing in Lakewood in order to have the funds necessary to widen the 9 here.
The State has spent plenty of money on infrastructure in the last 50 years, and it did not go towards widening route 9. The idea that they are ticketing to cover the cost of route 9 expansion is laughable.
I couldn’t agree more what the author of this article is writing. 100% true!!
And I love that truth.
I got pulled over for a tail light out, and the trooper said he was out of paper and the ticket will be mailed. About 6 weeks later I recieved a a failure to appear in court with an additional fine added, it knowing that a summons was even issued. Our caring trooperating caused unnecessary hardship.
Lakewood is an absolute disaster to drive in. I can say that i’ve been in several close calls in rapid succession multiple times in the Rt9 / County Line Rd area. If you want to play a fun game just drive down Rt9 from County Line Rd to Rt88 and count how many mini vans are missing bumpers or have obvious body damage, it will give you a real idea of how poor the drivers in that community are.
Thanks for sharing this wonderful wonderful thing
How about operating fully functioning vehicles? I have been behind several drivers recently whose brake lights weren’t working. Three brake lights -zero working. Do you know what it’s like to drive behind a car like that? I had to watch the brake lights of the car in front of him to know when to slow down.
Also, how about making sure your lights are on at night? Driving without your headlights on makes you just as invisible as pedestrians without reflectors.
And then there’s the little matter of blinkers. How about using them? And maybe before you actually start to turn. Blinking your eyes doesn’t count. Use your blinkers.
Bus drivers should not be driving while eating (nor should anyone else), especially when what they’re eating requires two hands, e.g. yogurt, ice cream in a bowl, soup and cholent. It is not safe to operate a motor vehicle while holding a bowl or container of something in one hand and feeding yourself with the other.
The pedestrians in town might save themselves from grievous harm if they didn’t: J-walk; cross in the middle of the street, usually from between parked cars, instead of the crosswalk; let their toddlers toddle across the street instead of carrying them; blab on their phones and not look where they were going; cross against the light; and, charge into the street without looking to see if the coast was clear before they stepped off the curb.
As for the township itself; paving the roads, increased lighting at night, functioning street lights, mandated reflectors at night and a building freeze may go a long way to alleviating the problem.