Burlington County Sheriff Jean Stanfield announced her department has been awarded three traffic safety grants totaling $162,000 from the Division of Highway Traffic Safety. These grants will fund the Sheriff’s Child Passenger Safety Seat, Comprehensive Traffic Safety, and Pedestrian Decoy Enforcement programs.
“Last year, only 39 percent of the Burlington County families who voluntarily came to a safety seat checkpoint had their child’s seat properly installed when they arrived at the checkpoint,” said Sheriff Stanfield. “This underscores the critical need for our Safety Seat program in Burlington County, particularly when motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for children under six-months and six years of age.”
Currently, safety seat checkpoints are held every Wednesday at the County Administration Complex in Mt. Holly from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
“We will use a $96,000 grant for our Comprehensive Traffic Safety Program with the goal of continuing to reduce pedestrian and bike accidents through safety education and training, public service announcements, speed enforcement, defensive driving classes, and distribution of bike helmets,” continued Sheriff Jean Stanfield.
The Sheriff’s Department partners in these efforts with the Burlington County Traffic Safety Committee which is comprised of representatives from local government, law enforcement, state agencies and non-profit groups who deal in traffic safety issues.
“In 2013, the Sheriff’s Department began the Pedestrian Enforcement Program which ensures that motorists are complying with pedestrian crossing laws,” said Sheriff Stanfield. “The $ 30,000 for this program will enable us to conduct enforcement operations at various locations throughout the county in conjunction with municipal police departments to ensure the safety of our residents.”
For more information on these programs, visit the Sheriff’s Department’s section of the county webpage at co.burlington.nj.us.
