Police, Fire & Courts

Island PDs to Participate in Traffic Enforcement Detail Thursday

by
Daniel Nee
September 24, 2025

Police Lights (Photo: Jason Rojas/Flickr)

Police departments up and down the barrier island will participate in a county-wide traffic safety enforcement detail set for Thursday, with efforts focused on Route 35 and its cross streets.

The enforcement detail is part of the ongoing “Goal Zero” project, spearheaded by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, which seeks to tackle a “staggering rise in traffic deaths in New Jersey.” So far this year, 401 people have lost their lives on New Jersey roadways, and 45 of those deaths occurred in Ocean County, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement Tuesday.

The police departments in Berkeley, Seaside Park, Seaside Heights, Toms River, Lavallette, Brick, Mantoloking, Bay Head and Point Pleasant Beach will all participate. The “high visibility” enforcement detail will occur between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Thursday, September 25, 2025.

“High-visibility enforcement is about saving lives, not writing tickets,” Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer said in the statement. “very patrol, every stop, and every light we activate is a step toward Goal: Zero. The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office stands behind this mission-because zero traffic deaths isn’t just a goal, it’s our shared responsibility.”

Goal:Zero

The September enforcement detail will be the last of the year. The program was initiated in March after 2025 began with a rash of traffic deaths statewide, with Ocean County representing more than its usual share of fatal accidents.

Holmdel Township Police Patrolman Matt Menosky was the catalyst behind the initial Goal: Zero campaign in 2024, which brought together 36 municipalities to target dangerous driving behaviors. The bright green color of the Goal: Zero logo represents high visibility and is the color for pedestrian and school safety. The black bar is a mourning band for all lives lost in traffic crashes.