SPEED
39A:S-1. Racing
a. A person who operates a motor vehicle on a public highway for a wager or in a
race or for the purpose of making a speed record or who arranges for, manages,
encourages, or assists in the holding of, or the attempting to hold, any such race or speed
race event, is a disorderly person.
b. First violation of this section is a class C offense. Subsequent violation is a
class B offense.
Source: 39:4-52; 39:5C-1.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original sections, but combines them.
Subsection (b) designates penalties according to the new penalty classification system contained in
39A:44-GP1. The level of the offense had been changed from class D to class C for the first offense and
from class C to class B for subsequent offense by the Commission to bring the penalty in accord with
penalties for similar offenses and to address concerns raised by law enforcement officers.
39A:S-2. Slow speed
No person shall drive a motor vehicle at such a slow speed as to impede or block
the normal and reasonable movement of traffic except when reduced speed is necessary
for safe operation or in compliance with law.
Source: 39:4-97.1.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original.
39A:S-3. Rates of speed
a. Subject to 39:4-96 and 39:4-97 and except in instances where a lower speed is
specified in this chapter, it shall be prima facie lawful for the driver of a vehicle to drive
it at a speed not exceeding the following:
(1) Four mph across a sidewalk.
(2) 25 miles per hour (“mph”), when passing through a school zone during recess,
when the presence of children is clearly visible from the highway, or while children are
going to or leaving school, during opening or closing hours;
(3) 25 mph in any business or residential district;
(4) 35 mph in any suburban business or residential district;
(5) 50 mph in all other locations, except as provided in 39:4-98.3 et al.
b. Except as provided in 39:4-8, whenever it is determined on the basis of an
engineering and traffic investigation that any speed in this section is greater or less than is
reasonable or safe under the conditions at any intersection or other place on any part of a
highway, the COT, for State highways, may by regulation and municipal or county
authorities, for highways under their respective jurisdictions, may by ordinance or
resolution, as appropriate, and subject to the approval of the COT, designate a reasonable
and safe speed limit. Such a designated speed limit shall be prima facie lawful when
appropriate signs giving notice of the speed are erected at the intersection, or other place
or part of the highway.
c. Appropriate signs giving notice of the speed limits authorized under subsection
(a) may be erected if the COT or the municipal or county authorities, as the case may be,
determine they are necessary. Appropriate signs giving notice of the speed limits
authorized under subsection (b) shall be erected by the COT or the municipal or county
authorities, as appropriate. The COT shall cause the erection and maintenance of signs at
such points of entrance to the State as are deemed advisable, setting forth the lawful rates
of speed.
d. The driver of every vehicle shall, consistent with the requirements of this
section, drive at an appropriate reduced speed when approaching and crossing an
intersection or railway grade crossing, when approaching and going around a curve, when
approaching a hill crest, when traveling upon any narrow or winding highway, and when
special hazard exists with respect to pedestrians or other traffic or by reason of weather or
highway conditions.
e. The State Highway Commissioner may, by regulation and with appropriate
signs, designate lower maximum speed limits for trucks of a registered gross weight of
10,000 pounds and over, at a differential of five miles per hour, on State highways or
appropriate portions of highways having four or more traffic lanes, where the legal speed
limit is 50 mph or greater.
Source: 39:4-98; 39:4-98.1; 39:4-100.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original sections, but combines them.
39A:S-4. 65 mph speed limit
a. As used in this section:
(1) "Authorities" means the New Jersey Highway Authority, the New
Jersey Turnpike Authority and the South Jersey Transportation Authority.
(2) "Eligible public highways" means public highways as defined in
27:1B-3 of which portions have been determined by the COT to be appropriate
for a 65 mph speed limit based on criteria determined by the COT. Public
highways under the jurisdiction of counties and municipalities are not eligible
public highways.
b. After initially establishing, by written order, the speed limit of 65 mph on
approximately 400 miles of eligible highway, the COT may increase or decrease the
number of miles of eligible public highways on which a 65 mph speed limit has been
established. An order increasing or decreasing the number of highways with a speed limit
of 65 mph, shall cite the eligible public highways to which it is to be applicable and
contain a description in plain language of the order's contents, the effective date of the
order and any other information the COT deems necessary.
c. The COT shall cause a general public notice of a proposed order, including a
summary of the provisions of the proposed order, to be published in a newspaper or
newspapers having general circulation in the municipality or municipalities affected by
the order. The notice shall include a telephone number or address a member of the public
may use to receive a copy of the complete text of the proposed order and shall provide for
a 30-day period from the date of publication for public comment. The order shall be final
on the 31st day after publication of the notice or on a later date if the COT so determines.
Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the COT from extending the comment period or
from modifying or withdrawing the proposed order as a result of the review of public
comment.
d. A final order shall be effective and enforceable upon compliance with the
requirement for the proper posting of signs providing notice of the speed limit.
e. Any official traffic control device established pursuant to this section shall
conform to the "Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices."
f. An order issued pursuant to this section shall be binding and enforceable under
Title 39 and all other applicable laws, in any court of competent jurisdiction, until
superseded by order of the COT.
Source: 39:4-98.4; 39:4-98.5.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original sections, but combines them. The reference in
subsection (e) will be checked to make sure it refers to a federal manual, then the reference will be
clarified. The definition of “Commissioner” as “Commissioner of Transportation” was removed as that
definition appears elsewhere within the Title.
39A:S-5. Fines for offenses doubled
a. For the purposes of this section:
(1) “Area of highway construction or repair" means the segment of a highway
identified by properly posted traffic control devices or signs as undergoing construction,
reconstruction, repair, or maintenance operation. An area of highway construction or
repair consists of the area between the first traffic control device or sign informing motor
vehicle operators of the highway construction or repair and the last traffic control device
or sign indicating all restrictions are removed and normal motor vehicle operations may
resume.
(2) "Highway" means any highway under the jurisdiction of the State Department
of Transportation, a county, a municipality or a toll road authority.
(3) "Safe corridor" or "safe corridor area" means a segment of highway under the
jurisdiction of the DOT which, based upon accident rates, fatalities, traffic volume and
other highway traffic safety criteria, is identified by the COT as a segment warranting
designation as a "safe corridor."
(4) “Toll road authority" means the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, the New
Jersey Highway Authority, or the South Jersey Transportation Authority.
b. The fine for a motor vehicle offense embodied in the following sections of the
law, when committed in an area which has been designated as having a speed limit of 65
mph, shall be double the amount specified by law: 39:4-52; 39:4-57; 39:4-80; 39:4-81;
39:4-84; 39:4-85; 39:4-86; 39:4-88; 39:4-89; 39:4-90; 39:4-96; 39:4-97; 39:4-98 (when
guilty of driving at a speed that is 10 miles per hour or more over the established speed
limit); 39:4-126; 39:4-127; 39:4-129; 39:4-144; 39:5C-1; 39:4-82.1; 39:4-90.1; 27:23-29;
27:12B-18; and 27:25A-21.
c. The fine for a motor vehicle offense shall be double the amount specified by
law when traveling 20 mph or more over the designated speed limit as set forth in 39:498, except as provided in 39:4-203.5(b) and 39:4-98.6(a).
d. The fine for a motor vehicle offense embodied in the following sections the
law, when committed in an area of highway construction or repair, or when committed in
a designated safe corridor, shall be double the amount specified by law: 39:3-20(b); 39:452; 39:4-57; 39:4-71; 39:4-80; 39:4-81; 39:4-82; 39:4-83; 39:4-84; 39:4-85; 39:4-86;
39:4-88; 39:4-89; 39:4-90; 39:4-96; 39:4-97; 39:4-98; 39:4-99; 39:4-105; 39:4-115; 39:4119; 39:4-122; 39:4-123; 39:4-124; 39:4-125; 39:4-127; 39:4-129; 39:4-144; 39:5C-1;
39:4-66.1; 39:4-82.1; 39:4-90.1; 39:4-97.2; 39:4-98.7; 27:23-29; 27:12B-18; and 27:25A21.
e. Safe corridor areas shall be designated by traffic order issued pursuant to 39:48.2 et seq.
f. When an area of highway construction or repair is within a safe corridor, the
fine for a motor vehicle offense embodied in subsection (d) shall be doubled only once.
When a safe corridor is within an area of highway construction or repair, the fine for a
motor vehicle offense embodied in subsection (d) shall be doubled only once. Fines for
violation of 39:4-98.7 in a safe corridor or an area of highway construction or repair shall
be doubled only once. The increase from the doubled fines imposed and collected in
designated safe corridor areas shall be forwarded by the person to whom they are paid to
the State Treasurer, who shall annually deposit those moneys in the "Highway Safety
Fund" established pursuant to 39:3-20.4.
g. Signs designed in compliance with the specifications of the DOT or, if
appropriate, the authority having jurisdiction over the highway, shall be appropriately
placed, by order of the Commissioner or the affected authority to notify drivers
approaching areas designated as: having a speed limit of 65 miles per hour, areas of
highway construction or repair, or designated safe corridor areas, that the fines are
doubled for motor vehicle offenses in those areas. Traffic control signs and devices
erected or displayed by the DOT or an authority within an area designated as having a
speed limit of 65 miles per hour, areas of highway construction or repair, or designated
safe corridor areas, shall conform to the uniform system specified in the most current
"Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways," prepared by the
Federal Highway Administration in the United States Department of Transportation.
h. It is not a defense to the imposition of the fines authorized under this section
that a sign notifying drivers that fines are doubled was not posted, improperly posted,
wrongfully removed or stolen, or that signs or devices were not placed in compliance
with the most current "Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and
Highways."
i. The COT shall include information concerning the penalties imposed pursuant
to this section in any revision of the New Jersey Driver Manual and the New Jersey
Motorist Guide.
Source: 39:4-98.6; 39:4-98.7; 39:4-203.5.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original sections, but combines them.
The reference to the manual in subsection (h) will be checked to make sure that it is accurate, and
the language of the subsection will be updated as necessary. The MVC will be asked about the reference to
the New Jersey Motorist Guide in subsection (i).
39A:S-6. Reduction of speed for maintenance, repair or emergent conditions
a. A county or municipal governing body may adopt an ordinance or resolution,
as appropriate, designating a county or municipal official who may order a reduction of a
regular speed limit for periods not to exceed 72 hours on segments of highways under its
jurisdiction for the purpose of maintenance or repairs. A resolution or ordinance adopted
pursuant to this subsection shall specify the circumstance under which a speed limit may
be reduced. An ordinance or resolution reducing the speed limit pursuant to this
subsection shall not require the approval of the COT but it is the duty of the designated
county or municipal official to notify the COT of the affected segment of highway no less
than seven days before any reduced speed limit takes effect; except that in emergency
situations the notification period may be waived by the COT. It is the duty of the
designated county or municipal official to place one or more signs indicating the reduced
speed limit along the affected highway.
b. The COT is authorized to set or change by emergency order, for periods of up
to 60 days, the speed limit on any public highway based on emergent conditions, such as
construction work, dangerous conditions, extreme congestion or traffic problems,
imminent peril, or imminent risk to motorists or to the public safety. An order issued
pursuant to this subsection shall cite the portions of public highway to which it applies, a
description in plain language of what the order requires, the effective date of the order
and any other information the COT deems necessary. An emergency order shall be final
upon the signature of the COT, or on a later date selected by the COT and shall be
effective and enforceable upon compliance with the requirement for the posting of signs
providing notice of the speed limit. An emergency order issued pursuant to this
subsection may, upon its expiration date, be renewed by the COT for additional 60-day
periods, until the emergent condition necessitating the emergency order is mitigated.
c. An official traffic control device established pursuant to this section shall
conform to the "Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices."
d. A speed limit established pursuant to this section shall be prima facie lawful
when appropriate signs giving notice of the speed limit are erected.
Source: 39:4-98.2; 39:4-98.9.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original sections, but combines them. The reference to
the manual in subsection (c) will be checked to determine if it refers to a federal manual, and the language
will be updated as necessary.
39A:S-7. Exceeding speed limits
a. It shall be prima facie unlawful for a person to exceed any of the foregoing
speed limitations or any speed limitation in effect as established by the proper authority.
b. In every charge of violation of this chapter, the complaint and the summons or
notice to appear, shall specify the speed at which the defendant is alleged to have driven
and the speed which this article declares shall be prima facie lawful at the time and place
of the alleged violation.
c. If a physician's motor vehicle is stopped for exceeding the speed limit while
responding to an emergency call, the registration number of the vehicle and the driver's
license number may be inspected and noted and the physician shall then be allowed to
proceed in the vehicle to the physician’s destination. Proceedings may be taken
subsequently as would be proper if the person was not been a physician.
d. Motor vehicles belonging to the military establishment, while in use for official
purposes in time of riot, insurrection or invasion; all police officers, while engaged in the
apprehension of violators of the law, or of persons charged with, or suspected of, a
violation, are exempt from the provisions of this chapter relating to speed.
Source: 39:4-99; 39:4-102; 39:4-103.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original sections, but combines them.
39A:S-8. Speedway
Nothing in this chapter shall apply to a speedway, constructed with the permission
of the local authorities or the board of freeholders of the county or counties in which the
speedway is located, and built or intended for the exclusive use of motor vehicles, if the
speedway at no point crosses a highway, railroad or railway at grade.
Source: 39:4-101.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original.
39A:S-9. Photo radar
Notwithstanding any law, rule or regulation to the contrary, a law enforcement
officer or agency shall not use photo radar to enforce the provisions of this chapter. As
used in this act, "photo radar" means a device used primarily for highway speed limit
enforcement substantially consisting of a radar unit linked to a camera, which
automatically produces a photograph of a vehicle traveling at a speed in excess of the
legal limit.
Source: 39:4-103.1
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original.
39A:S-10. Penalty
Unless another penalty is specified in this chapter, each violation of any section of
this chapter is a class D offense.
Source: 39:4-104.
COMMENT
This section contains the substance of the original.
The section designates penalty according to the new penalty classification system contained in
39A:44-GP1. The level of the offense had been changed from class C to class D by the Commission to
bring the penalty in accord with penalties for similar offenses and to address concerns raised by law
enforcement officers.