BY JENNIFER AMATO
Staff Writer
Above: Carlton Brathwaite, a junior at North Brunswick Township High School, tries to navigate a set course while wearing Fatal Vision goggles, which simulate impaired driving. While Brathwaite runs over a set of cones, Patrolman Jason Hatez holds on for dear life. Below: Jenna Logan tries to pass a field sobriety test while wearing the goggles. The activities took place during the DRIVE (Driver Response Impaired Vision Exercise) program held May 10 at the high school. NORTH BRUNSWICK – The township high school is trying to DRIVE across the point of how dangerous drinking and driving can be for anyone, especially young, inexperienced students.
The Driver Response Impaired Vision Exercise (DRIVE) program was initiated in 2001 by Middlesex County Freeholder H. James Polos to educate teenage drivers about the dangers of impaired driving. Students in North Brunswick were placed behind the wheel of a golf cart while wearing specialty goggles that simulate intoxicated driving while requiring them to navigate a set course on May 10.
PHOTOS BY JEFF GRANIT staff “Students experience [impaired driving] before it’s too late,” said Patrolman Jason Hatez of the Traffic Safety and Fatal Accident Investigation units of the North Brunswick Police Department, who conducted the program with Officer Craig Patton. “This shows what is going to happen to you before you go out with your friends on the weekends; accidents happen. This is to deter them from future involvement.”
He said that about 40,000 to 46,000 people in the U.S. die each year on the highways and 16 to 17 percent are alcohol related. Regular fatal motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death for ages 4 to 34 and there was at least one fatal alcohol-related accident in North Brunswick last year.
“Teens are getting worse. They’re not scared anymore,” he said.
One teenager who was scared was Shobit Manchanda, who proclaimed, “I’m never drinking and driving – that’s all I can say,” as soon as he exited the course.
Anifer Bakarr had similar sentiments, explaining the visual effect of the goggles as unbalanced, making the turns difficult.
“I couldn’t set the wheel straight. I was knocking over all of the cones,” she described.
Nicole Rockenstein noted how the inexperience of young drivers, along with their inability to determine their alcohol tolerance, plays into many drunken-driving scenarios.
“I’m a new driver; I got my license about a month ago. Driving like that is even harder because we’re inexperienced. I think experience has a lot to do with it,” she said.
During the DUI program, a Saturn vehicle that was involved in a motor vehicle crash was displayed by Logan Towing.
“The people who got into that car didn’t intend for that to happen. … Be preventative and think about it before you get into that car,” Police Director Kenneth McCormick said.
“You shouldn’t be drinking but if you do, please don’t get behind the wheel,” council President Bob Davis added.
In addition, goggles were used to simulate a field sobriety test in which police officers have questionable drivers try to walk a straight line.
“This program is a more serious part of the North Brunswick Township Quality of Life initiative,” Mayor Francis “Mac” Womack said. “The youth in our community are very important to us all, and it is crucial that they are aware of the dangers of driving while intoxicated.”
The Pennsylvania DUI Association will bring the Safety Bug, a custom-engineered simulation which demonstrates the loss of control one would experience if operating a motor vehicle in impaired state, to the school this week. On May 30, Hatez and Mothers Against Drunk Driving member Maria Estevez will present videos and personal experiences about the effects of driving drunk.
There will also be additional DWI checkpoints sponsored through the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office and extra patrols during junior prom on May 18 and senior prom on June 1.
The DRIVE program included the involvement of the Middlesex County Department of Public Works, the county Department of Highways and the State Police of New Jersey. The North Brunswick Township Council presented a proclamation on May 7, declaring May DUI Awareness Month.