By Doug Carman, Staff Writer
EAST WINDSOR — Ben Serlin wasn’t planning to leave the country in the immediate future, but he still decided he wanted a new passport Wednesday. His brother Nick was due to get his renewed anyway.
Typically, the East Windsor brothers would have to take a trip to Trenton or Hamilton to get their passports, but thanks to a four-year-old program in Mercer County, the Serlin brothers and about 40 others only needed to go to the municipal building in town Wednesday afternoon.
"This is much more convenient," Nick said.
Mercer County Clerk Paula Sollami Covello said they accepted 31 passport applications Wednesday, though they helped nine additional people who decided to complete their applications by mail to save on some of the fees the county charges for the service. She said Wednesday was the fifth time since 2008 that they set up their mobile passport service in East Windsor. Though they held "Passport Days" in several of the county’s towns and boroughs, East Windsor typically draws one of the largest number of applicants.
Ms. Covello said she thought East Windsor’s relatively large population and its distance from Trenton, being on the opposite end of the county, contributed to its demand. Typically, Hopewell, the busiest stop for the mobile operation, handles as many as 80 appointments and walk-ins.
In comparison, the passport service only handled 28 people altogether in Lawrence May 12. Ms. Covello believed the lower demand there had to do with the fact that it’s simply closer to Trenton than East and West Windsor.
Countywide, the demand for passports has soared since 2009, when U.S. citizens became required to have a passport to travel to and from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean Island nations. Before then, having a passport wasn’t necessary.
Ms. Covello said Mercer County, with a population of 366,513 according to the 2010 Census, processed about 6,100 passports in 2010.
East Windsor is the second of three stops for the mobile passport service. The last one for the spring will be held at the Ewing Municipal Building, 2 Jake Garzio Drive, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday.

