Three-car crash likely to cause traffic backup on Route 3

A three-car crash on eastbound Route 3 in Rutherford, just east of Route 21, is likely to backup traffic Thursday morning, police said. No injuries were reported.

The crash occurred shortly before 7 a.m., said police, who did not provide further information.

Motorists should expect traffic to slow as the vehicles are cleared from the roadway, police said.

In Clifton, an earlier rollover accident on Route 3 near the Route 46 merger, which temporarily shut down all westbound traffic around 6 a.m., has been cleared, police said. No injuries were reported in that single-vehicle crash.

— Michael J. Feeney Northjersey.com

Car Plunges off Route 21 and falls to the ground upside down;

Passaic New Jersey —Three people escaped death early Sunday morning after the car they were riding in plunged off rt 21 onto a local street , police and fire officials said.The male driver and the two passengers were able to escape from the vehicle before Police and E.M.S arrived.

The accident happened on Rt 21 but the car fell about 15 feet to the ground upside down  near Columbia and Passaic street. According to police, the driver of the car lost control of the vehicle around 1 a.m. The car struck the guard rail, flipped over and took a  tree down and fell to the ground. The rear window of the car popped out, allowing an escape route. Police said the driver and passengers were taken by Hatzolah Of North Jersey And Passaic E.M.S as well as Paramedics from the scene. Their conditions are not known at this time but they were transported to Saint Joes Trauma Center

Snow is on the way

A snowstorm expected to cross New Jersey tonight might make tomorrow’s morning commute a little messy for some travelers but carries the potential for significant snow in other areas.

Anticipated to hit the state around 9 p.m., it could last until noon tomorrow, said Valerie Meola, meteorologist at the National Weather Service.

“The storm is over the Southeastern states, and it’s moving up the coast,” Meola said. “How far the storm lands off the coast will determine how much snow falls on our area.”

Depending on the track of the storm, weather officials said Essex, Union, Hudson, Bergen and Passaic counties could see between 6 and 12 inches. Sussex and Morris counties could see between four to seven inches.

Middlesex, western Monmouth and Mercer counties could experience 2 to 4 inches, beginning first as rain.

Warren, Hunterdon and Somerset counties could see nearly 2 inches as well, Meola said.

Temperatures tonight will plummet below freezing for most of the state, Meola said.

Tomorrow, temperatures will hover around the high 30s in the northern part of the state and in the 40s farther south.

Nawal Qarooni may be reached at nqarooni@starledger.com or (732) 404-8082.

Truck fire closes parts of Route 3 in Clifton

CLIFTON — A Wednesday afternoon truck fire on Route 3 snarled eastbound traffic for more than three miles, causing delays that stretched onto Route 46 and into Little Falls.

At about 1:30 p.m., a plumber driving onto the highway from the Bloomfield Avenue entrance heard an explosion from the back of his truck. He pulled over on the ramp’s shoulder, saw smoke pouring out the back and thought about the chemicals onboard. NorthJersey.com

Tolls in the Garden State may be going up 50%

Gov. Corzine’s plan to raise tolls on New Jersey highways in order to cut state debt could lead to toll increases of 50 percent or more within two years of taking effect, Senate President Richard Codey said Monday, according to a report in the Asbury Park Press.

Codey, (D-Essex), said he does not know an exact figure, but that it’s “reasonable to say” tolls would rise by 50 percent or more, based on the amount of money Corzine hopes to raise in order to reduce the state’s $38 billion debt, the report said.

A 50 percent increase would mean a more than $3.20 increase on the $6.45 it costs cars to drive the length of the New Jersey Turnpike. A 70-cent Garden State Parkway toll would rise by 35 cents, the report said.

77 police officers hurt in Paris riots

AP VILLIERS-LE-BEL, France – Rampaging youths rioted overnight in Paris’ suburbs, hurling Molotov cocktails and setting fire to dozens of cars. At least 77 officers were injured and officers were fired at, a senior police union official said Tuesday.The violence was more intense than during three weeks of rioting in 2005, said the official, Patrice Ribeiro. Police were shot at and are facing “genuine urban guerillas with conventional weapons and hunting weapons,” Ribeiro said.

Some officers were hit by shotgun pellets, Interior Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said. She said there were six serious injuries, “people who notably were struck in the face and close to the eyes.”

The riots were triggered by the deaths of two teens killed in a crash with a police patrol car on Sunday in Villiers-le-Bel, a town of public housing blocks home to a mix of Arab, black and white residents in Paris’ northern suburbs.

Residents claimed that officers left the crash scene without helping the teens, whose motorbike collided with the car. Officials cast doubt on the claim, but the internal police oversight agency was investigating.

Youths first rioted Sunday and again overnight Monday to Tuesday, when the violence apparently got worse.

Police barricades were set on fire and youths threw stones and Molotov cocktails at officers, who retaliated with tear gas and rubber bullets. In Villiers-le-Bel and surrounding areas, youths set fire to 36 vehicles, the area’s prefecture said.

Youths were seen firing buckshot at police and reporters. A police union official said a round from a hunting rifle pierced the body armor of one officer who suffered a serious shoulder wound.

Among the buildings targeted by the youths was a library, which was set afire.

In Sunday’s violence, eight people were arrested and 20 police officers were injured — including the town’s police chief, who was attacked in the face when he tried to negotiate with the rioters, police said. One firefighter also was injured.

Residents drew parallels to the 2005 riots, which were prompted by the deaths of two teens electrocuted in a power substation while hiding from police in a suburb northeast of Paris.

A recent study by the state auditor’s office indicated that money poured into poor French suburbs in recent decades had done little to solve problems vividly exposed by the 2005 riots, including discrimination, unemployment and alienation from mainstream society.

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N.J.S.P. targets drunken driving and seatbelts

Starting Wednesday, New Jersey State Police troopers will begin their days with shift briefings that include personal stories from representatives from Mothers Against Drunk Driving to inspire the troopers in their effort to combat drunken driving.

“Many of these Troopers have experienced the horror of DWI as part of their duties, but when the scene is cleared and the reports are written, the tragedy of the incident is truly just beginning for someone somewhere,” said Maj. Matthew Walker, Commander of Troop D on the New Jersey Turnpike. “These family members volunteering with MADD are the faces that our troopers never get to see — the victims that suffer the rest of their lives from a senseless loss.”

Targeted seatbelt enforcement is another very important job that troopers will perform on the state’s highways throughout the whole holiday season. According to the latest data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, (NHTSA) 31,415 passenger vehicle occupants died in crashes across the nation in 2005, and more than half of them were not wearing seat belts.

During the 2005 and 2006 Thanksgiving holidays, there were an unbelievable 16 fatal crashes each year resulting in 41 total deaths. Previous years averaged less than half that amount. About 50 percent of those deaths resulted from accidents involving alcohol.

Throughout the state, extra troopers will strictly enforce hazardous violations, including the failure of vehicle occupants to wear seatbelts. Sober driving and regular seat belt use are two of the most effective ways to protect people and reduce fatalities in motor vehicle crashes. Research has shown that when lap/shoulder belts are used properly, the risk of fatal injury to front seat passenger car occupants is reduced by 45 percent, and the risk of moderate-to-critical injury is reduced by 50 percent.

A little traffic ease for the Holiday season RT,46 RT,23 I,80

New Jersey

Although completion of repairs still is a year away, the bridges, ramps and travel lanes on Routes 80, 46 and 23 will be opened for the holiday season, state Transportation Department officials announced Monday.

The highway plan would make it easer for motorists to shop and travel from Thanksgiving to New Year’s, Transportation Commissioner Kris Kolluri said.

The roadway upgrades are part of a regional initiative by the DOT to improve the Route 46 corridor from Clifton to Fairfield, Kolluri said. The $70 million project to renovate the three routes and their nexus — also known as the “Spaghetti Bowl” — is in its final stages and should be completed by November 2008.

Once completed, the project will have replaced nine bridge decks, realigned and resurfaced roadways, modified ramps and added signs, lighting, guide rails and acceleration and deceleration lanes.

Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., D-Paterson, who has guided appropriation of millions of dollars for the renovation of the “Spaghetti Bowl” while on the House Transportation Committee, said he appreciated the move by the DOT and that the area’s commuters would have an easier time.

“Commerce will be made easier and families will feel safer on the renovated roadway,” Pascrell said in a statement. northjersey.com

Tougher enforcement could prevent teen crashes, officials say

 Teen drivers routinely ignore restrictions imposed on provisional licenses, tougher enforcement of existing laws would save many lives, members of the Governor’s Teen Driver Study Commission were told tonight.

About 200 people attended the commission’s hearing at Colts Neck High School in Monmouth County, the first of three to be held this fall.

Commission chairwoman Pam Fischer said the state was not seeking to raise the age at which it licenses teenaged drivers. “There’s been a lot of rumor out there that the commission is going to raise the age to 18,” she said. “It’s not on the table.”

Rather, the commission is studying ways to improve the state’s safety record, she said. That could mean changing current methods of driver education, mandating stricter enforcement of the existing graduated driver’s license program, or requiring new drivers to put stickers or placards on their cars.

Nearly seven years ago, New Jersey joined dozens of other states in adopting a “graduated driver’s license” law. The law grants driving privileges to teens in phases.

At 16, a teen with a permit can drive only if accompanied by an adult. At 17, a teen with a provisional license can drive without an adult but cannot drive late at night or with more than one passenger. Not until 18 can a teen get full driving privileges under the GDL.

Between 2001 and 2006, more than 400 New Jersey teenagers were killed in motor vehicle accidents, according to Fischer, who is also director of the state’s Highway Traffic Safety Division.

Passaic N.J. Flipped over car Main and Brook with no one around

Passaic N.J.  At 2:57AM Their was a flipped over car on Main Ave and Brook Ave with no one around. Passaic Fire,Police and Hatzolah E.M.S all on scene and no one in the area driver fled away. The driver must have crawled out the window that was a half a block away.Car was towed to Police head quarters for investigation.

Route 3 bridge work to enter a new phase

CLIFTON — The nighttime headache is almost over for Route 3 eastbound drivers, but westbound drivers: Tag, you’re it!

During the second week of December, the Department of Transportation will begin replacing steel grids on the westbound side of the Route 3 bridge over the Passaic River. Work will run from 9:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. Monday through Thursday, and from 10:30 p.m. Friday to 7:30 a.m. Saturday, said DOT spokesman Tim Greeley.

Uncertain what traffic will be like? Ask an eastbound late-night commuter.

For Mike Kaminski, 21, who works in the music section at the Barnes & Noble bookstore in Clifton Commons, it stinks. The Belleville resident has sat in the traffic more than a dozen times on Friday nights, he said, when he drives to Manhattan with friends.

“There’s still traffic (at that hour) and it’s unbelievable,” he said.

Construction has required that two lanes be closed, funneling traffic through the remaining lane. The line of cars often stretches from the Bloomfield Avenue entrance on Route 3 to the bridge, causing 20-minute delays. NorthJersey.com