New Jersey motorists who drive on bald tires or with broken tail lights may not have to worry about failing inspection anymore, but they should be prepared to pay a fine.
Police in New Jersey have been writing more tickets for safety violations since ending mandatory annual vehicle inspections.
In August of 2010, New Jersey became the 30th state to do away with safety inspections for all vehicles. The move was made in order to save the state $11 million each year. Federally funded emissions tests are still conducted every two years on vehicles that are five years or older.
Safety advocates and repair shop owners had argued that dropping inspection requirements would cause more car accidents, but data shows the opposite to be true. Overall, traffic crashes are down six percent from 2008 numbers. Car accident fatalities and injuries are also on the decline, reduced by 11% since 2009. Even those caused by vehicle mechanical problems did not increase, but rather dropped since 2009, albeit only one percent.
Last year, police issued nearly 100,000 citations for poorly maintained lights, 13.8% more than in 2009, when the safety inspections were still being performed. Citations for missing or non-working lights rose 23%, as did tickets for improper license plates or numbers. Tickets for damaged windshields rose 39%. Rates of some citations fell, however, with tickets for poor brake performance and faulty mufflers decreasing 27% and 23%, respectively.
Drivers in New Jersey have a responsibility to ensure that their vehicles are in safe working order. Worn tires can reduce a vehicle’s traction or cause a blowout, resulting in a driver’s loss of control. A cracked or obstructed windshield can limit a driver’s view of the road. Worn or faulty brakes may not only limit a driver’s ability to avoid a car accident, but can increase the force of impact, resulting in greater car accident injuries.
