In response to multi-vehicle accidents involving 40 cars on the New Jersey Turnpike on February 9, 2015, State Transportation Commissioner and chairman of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, Jamie Fox, has ordered a review of the turnpike’s winter weather preparation operations.
The massive wreck, which occurred in icy conditions near Cranbury, New Jersey, left 70 people injured and one person dead. New Jersey State Police are investigating the fatal accident, but Fox has called upon the New Jersey Turnpike Authority to conduct their own review to help prevent future multi-vehicle accidents.
Daniel P. McNamara, former maintenance director for the New Jersey Turnpike, expressed his concern that the devastating accident on February 9th could have been prevented. McNamara claims that the turnpike does not employ enough maintenance crews to sufficiently treat the road for winter weather since the recent expansion of the turnpike in the area where the accident occurred. As part of a $2.3 billion project to ease congestion, a 35 mile stretch of the turnpike was widened by six lanes, three in each direction. The expansion was completed in fall of 2014.
Turnpike spokesman, Tom Feeney, dismissed McNamara’s claims as those of an uninformed disgruntled former employee. Feeney defended the turnpike’s winter weather preparations, and emphasized that the Turnpike Authority is committed to safety and accident prevention. According to Feeney, 15 trucks began salting the road at about 9:00 a.m. on the morning of February 9th, 12 hours before the multi-car wreck occurred. At the time of the accident, speed limits had been reduced from 65 mph to 35 mph during a mix of freezing rain and snow flurries.
Turnpike Authority Chairman Fox is hopeful that a thorough review of the turnpike’s winter weather preparation operations will provide insight as to how to prevent future car accidents. He emphasized that in addition to contractor and maintenance work, it is essential that car and truck drivers exercise caution when driving in dangerous weather conditions.
A 52 old man from Bordentown, New Jersey in Burlington County was trapped in his car as a result of the chain reaction accident and died at the scene. A preliminary investigation by the New Jersey State Police has revealed that the male was trapped by two tractor trailers that lost control on the icy turnpike while slowing down in an attempt to avoid multiple accidents which lay ahead. Multi-vehicle crashes occurred in the inner southbound lanes, which are reserved for passenger cars, and the outer southbound lanes, which are open to both cars and trucks. A total of 40 vehicles were involved in the wreck, and 70 people were transported to area hospitals to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
