New Campaign Enlists Help of Diners to Remind Motorists to "Move Over"

At 450 diners throughout New Jersey, the coloring pages distributed to children are now more than a distraction to keep them busy. They're also an effort to educate the public about a law that intends to protect first responders.

500,000 place mats describing the state's Move Over law are to be distributed to 450 diners throughout New Jersey through a partnership between the Middlesex County Law and Public Safety Committee and the Middlesex County Comprehensive Traffic Safety Program, the New Jersey Department of Health and Traffic Safety, the New Jersey State Police, and Pan Gregorian Enterprises.

The place mats advertise that drivers in New Jersey must, by law, move over one lane away from stopped emergency response vehicles. If they cannot move over, they must slow down to the posted speed limit. Failure to do so may result in the driver being ticketed.

The Move Over law was passed in 2009, but officials at a Tuesday press conference said the public isn't adequately aware of it.

One of the most known cases involving this law was the death of 29-year-old State Trooper Marc Castellano, who was struck by a car and killed in June 2010 while investigating an abandoned vehicle on a Howell highway.

In March, the Marlboro Police Department honored Castellano at its Community Excellence Gala, route: {:controller=>"articles", :action=>"show", :id=>"community-excellence-gala-celebrates-and-remembers"} --> and with their