"Drew's Law"; establishes 15 miles per hour speed limit in or near certain public parks.

A1574

ASSEMBLY, No. 1574

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman SEAN T. KEAN

District 30 (Monmouth and Ocean)

SYNOPSIS

���� "Drew's Law"; establishes 15 miles per hour
speed limit in or near certain public parks.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning speed limits in or near certain public
parks, designated as Drew�s Law, and amending R.S.39:4-98 and R.S.39:4-104.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� R.S.39:4-98 is amended
to read as follows:

���� 39:4-98.����� Rates of speed.�
Subject to the provisions of R.S.39:4-96 and R.S.39:4-97 and except in those
instances where a lower speed is specified in this chapter, it shall be prima
facie lawful for the driver of a vehicle to drive it at a speed not exceeding
the following:�

���� a.���� Twenty-five miles per
hour, when passing through a school zone during recess, when the presence of
children is clearly visible from the roadway, or while children are going to or
leaving school, during opening or closing hours;

���� b.��� (1) Twenty-five miles
per hour in any business or residential district;

���� (2)�� Thirty-five miles per
hour in any suburban business or residential district;

���� c.���� Fifty miles per hour in
all other locations, except as otherwise provided in the "Sixty-Five MPH
Speed Limit Implementation Act," pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1997,
c.415 (C.39:4-98.3 et al.)
;

����
d.��� Fifteen miles per
hour, when driving through or directly adjacent to a public park during hours
of operation, when children are clearly visible from the roadway, or while
children are going to or leaving a park event.� As used in this subsection,
�public park� means a park, recreation facility or area, or playground owned or
controlled by the State.� A county or municipality may establish, by resolution
or ordinance as appropriate, a speed limit of 15 miles per hour on roads in or
directly adjacent to a park, recreation facility or area, or playground owned
or controlled by a county or local government unit at times specified by this
subsection
.

���� Whenever it shall be
determined upon the basis of an engineering and traffic investigation that any
speed hereinbefore set forth is greater or less than is reasonable or safe
under the conditions found to exist at any intersection or other place or upon any
part of a highway, the Commissioner of Transportation, with reference to State
highways, may by regulation and municipal or county authorities, with reference
to highways under their jurisdiction, may by ordinance, in the case of
municipal authorities, or by ordinance or resolution, in the case of county
authorities, subject to the approval of the Commissioner of Transportation,
except as otherwise provided in R.S.39:4-8, designate a reasonable and safe
speed limit thereat which, subject to the provisions of R.S.39:4-96 and
R.S.39:4-97, shall be prima facie lawful at all times or at such times as may
be determined, when appropriate signs giving notice thereof are erected at such
intersection, or other place or part of the highway.� Appropriate signs giving
notice of the speed limits authorized under the provisions of paragraph (1) of
subsection b. and subsection c. of this section may be erected if the
commissioner or the municipal or county authorities, as the case may be, so
determine they are necessary.� Appropriate signs giving notice of the speed
limits authorized under the provisions of subsection a. and paragraph (2) of
subsection b. of this section shall be erected by the commissioner or the
municipal or county authorities, as appropriate.

���� When designating reasonable
and safe speed limits for a street under its jurisdiction pursuant to this
subsection, as part of an engineering and traffic investigation, a municipality
or county shall consider, but not be limited to, the following criteria:�
residential density; the presence, or lack, of sidewalks; the prevalence of
entry and exit ways for business and commercial establishments; whether school
children walk adjacent to the street on their way to and from school; and the
proximity of recreational or park areas, schools, community residences, family
day care homes, child care centers, assisted living facilities or senior
communities.� Nothing in this paragraph shall substitute for traffic count,
accident, and speed sampling data as appropriate.

���� The driver of every vehicle
shall, consistent with the requirements of this section, drive at an
appropriate reduced speed when approaching and crossing an intersection or
railway grade crossing, when approaching and going around a curve, when
approaching a hill crest, when traveling upon any narrow or winding roadway,
and when special hazard exists with respect to pedestrians or other traffic or
by reason of weather or highway conditions.

���� The Commissioner of
Transportation shall cause the erection and maintenance of signs at such points
of entrance to the State as are deemed advisable, setting forth the lawful
rates of speed, the wording of which shall be within his discretion.

(cf: P.L.2009, c.258, s.1)

���� 2.��� R.S.39:4-104 is amended
to read as follows:

���� 39:4-104.���
[
A
]
�
a.�
Except as provided in subsection b. of this section, a
person violating a
section of this article shall, for each violation, be subject to a fine of not
less than
[
$50.00
]

$50
or
more than
[
$200.00
]

$200
,
or imprisonment� for a period not exceeding 15 days, or both, except as herein
otherwise� provided.

����
b.��� A person violating
subsection d. of R.S.39:4-98 shall be subject to a fine of not less than $100
or more than $400, unless a county or municipality establishes an enhanced
penalty.

(cf: P.L.1982, c.45, s.4)

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes a speed
limit of 15 miles per hour, at certain times, on roads passing through or
directly adjacent to certain public parks, and increases the fines under
current law for violating these speed restrictions.

���� Under current law, a person
who exceeds the speed limit may be fined not less than $50 or more than $200.�
This bill increases the fine to not less than $100 or more than $400 for
violating the 15 miles per hour speed restriction on roads in public parks or
directly adjacent to public parks during hours of operation, when children are
clearly visible from the roadway, or while children are going to or leaving a
park event.� The bill defines �public park� to mean a park, recreation facility
or area, or playground owned or controlled by the State.

���� This bill clarifies that a
county or municipality may establish a speed limit of 15 miles per hour on
roads in or directly adjacent to a park, recreation facility or area, or
playground owned or controlled by the county or municipality during hours of
operation, when children are clearly visible from the roadway, or while
children are going to or leaving a park event. �A person who violates a speed
limit of 15 miles per hour adopted by a county or municipality in these park
areas is subject to enhanced fines, unless the county or municipality
establishes a penalty greater than that established by State law.

���� This bill is named �Drew�s
Law� in honor of Drew Keough.� On April 22, 2014, 11 year-old Drew was
tragically struck and killed by a motor vehicle while crossing the street near
Keansburg�s Forest Park after playing basketball in the park.� His untimely
death was a shock to the community and hundreds of people gathered to grieve
his death by candlelight vigil the following day.� In light of this tragedy,
the bill endeavors to prevent fatal motor vehicle accidents in or near public
parks by reducing the speed limit to 15 miles per hour, at certain times, on
street passing through and directly adjacent to certain public parks.