With NJ Safe Passing Law Now in Effect, Drivers Could Face Fines - TAPinto.net

TRENTON, NJ - There’s a new law for New Jersey drivers when it comes to sharing the road.

The NJ Safe Passing Law (NJSPL) (A5570/S2208) went into effect on Tuesday.

Like other road safety laws, the NJSPL provides clear rules of the road for all motorists. This law focuses about when—and how—to pass people sharing the road on foot, on bicycles, on scooters or in other legally permitted ways to travel without a car or truck.

This law follows in the footsteps of The State’s Move Over Law, which sets those rules for safely passing emergency and other essential vehicles to protect the crews that operate them. The State’s Stop and Stay Stopped Law sets rules for allowing pedestrians to safely cross streets.

The NJSPL focuses on how drivers can protect those legally allowed to share the road to help prevent the deaths, injuries and close calls that come from drivers speeding up and squeezing by people more vulnerable because they are not in a car, truck or bus. Those who violate the law face a fine of $100. If a driver hurts someone, the fine increases to $500 with two points on their license.

“This legislation was long overdue. Last year alone 246 of our vulnerable road users, pedestrians and bicyclists, died on NJ roadways,” said Sangeeta Badlani, Founder of Nikhil Badlani Foundation and Families for Safe Streets NJ. "These are lives that we can save by raising awareness and enforcement of this law. This law prioritizes safety and is a step towards ending the heartbreak that so many families suffer from a loss of a loved one in a preventable crash.”

The bipartisan bill was sponsored and cosponsored by 16 Senators and Assembly members, was approved 102-1 by the NJ Legislature last June, and signed by Governor Phil Murphy in August.

The Safe Passing Law requires drivers to use “due caution” whenever they see vulnerable people on the road. The law states that:

• Drivers must follow all current no-passing, no speeding laws AND move over a lane if there’s one to move into.
• On a single-lane road, drivers must allow at least a 4-foot safety zone when they pass.
• If 4 feet is not possible on a section of road, drivers must slow to 25 mph and be prepared to stop until they can pass safely without endangering those sharing the road.

According to Jim Hunt, the Safe Passing Campaign Leader for the New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition, in 2021, 690 people were killed on New Jersey's roads, the highest number since 2007.

“Almost two dozen cyclists were killed last year and 218 pedestrians, the highest number in 32 years,” he said. “The countless injuries and close calls have not been tracked, but somewhere in the state, every day people of every age in every neighborhood experience a driver passing them with no margin for safety.”

“The NJ Safe Passing Law is the strongest safe passing law in the country and with the increase in road fatalities and serious injuries across the state it comes at a critical time,” said Debra Kagan, Executive Director of the New Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition. This law gives us the opportunity to build awareness and prioritize safety first, making our roads safer for everyone, especially vulnerable road users.”

source: https://www.tapinto.net/towns/soma/categories/news/articles/with-nj-safe-passing-law-now-in-effect-drivers-could-face-fines-72

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