N.J. distracted-driver update: More than 1,000 cited by fellow drivers

More than 1,000 calls have been made reporting distracted drivers on New Jersey roads in the two months since the state unveiled a re-branded program designed to combat distracted driving, Attorney General Christopher Porrino and the Division of Highway Traffic Safety announced Thursday.

In April, the state said it was expanding the #77 program to allow motorists to report distracted drivers. Since its inception in 1995, #77 in New Jersey has been used to report aggressive driving, but it now permits motorists to report distracted driving as well.

As of Tuesday, the state had received 1,071 calls about distracted drivers through the program. But Lt. Michael Rizol, a traffic officer with the state police, said Thursday that the average daily number of calls had decreased since the expanded program's inception.

Just after the program was announced, police received about 90 calls a day, Rizol said. Since then, calls have tapered off to fewer than 20 a day. He attributed the dropoff to a reduction in media attention, saying the program received significant coverage when it was introduced.

Rizol also said that "all or the vast majority" of the calls have been related to cellphone usage, which he said was the intent of the program.

The state police's Regional Operations and Intelligence Center in West Trenton receives the calls before referring them to departments in specific locations. From there, Rizol said, police don't track when the calls lead to drivers' being pulled over and issued tickets, but it's possible that has happened on occasion.

"As a trooper, sometimes you hear a call come in about a driver and it's 20 miles away heading in the opposite direction. You don't take any action in that circumstance," Rizol said. "But maybe it's two miles away and it's coming toward you, you're going to take a look and see if you can find that person."

When callers observe the license-plate numbers of distracted drivers, the state sends letters to those drivers. As of Tuesday, the state had mailed 632 letters, which notify drivers that their vehicles have been reported.

"The state police can only send letters when they get a full license-plate number from callers," said John Schoonejongen, a spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, in an email.

Those who spot distracted drivers shouldn't distract themselves by texting while driving to report drivers, the state has cautioned. Announcing the program in April, the Division of Highway Traffic Safety urged drivers to pull over to make the call, use a hands-free device, or have someone else in the vehicle make the call.

Porrino said in a news release Thursday that the calls received through the re-branded program are an indication of its success.

"Now New Jerseyans know firsthand that the entire state is paying attention and will not tolerate those who create dangerous conditions on our roads because they can't wait to use or can't put down their cellphones," he said.

The initiative is the first of its kind nationally, the Division of Highway Traffic Safety said when it was instituted in April. Porrino said in April that New Jersey saw an 8 percent increase in traffic fatalities, to 604, in 2016, many attributed to distracted driving.