Police Join Effort to Make U.S. Fatality-Free on Thursday

Hillsborough police have joined a nationwide project aimed at eliminating traffic fatalities across the country for at least one day, Thursday.

The "Put the Brakes on Fatalities Day" project began in 2001, and is a public education program designed to encourage drivers to follow traffic laws in hopes of eliminating the deaths. The group notes about 99 people are killed each day in traffic fatalities across the country.

According to the group's website, the most common causes of fatalities include distracted driving—especially cell phone use—speeding, fatigue and drunk driving. A press release sent by Hillsborough Chief of Police notes 589 people died on New Jersey roads last year, down from the 627 in 2011—but more than in 2010, the year with the least amount of traffic deaths since the 1940s.

To help the project, police are "asking all motorists to be diligent in their observance of traffic laws and avoidance of distracted driving." No added enforcement is planned, but police regularly enforce the factors mentioned above.