Middlesex police officials kicked off their traffic safety campaign in an effort to reduce deadly crashes in the area.

“It’s a phenomenon since COVID, it’s not just in Middlesex – it’s statewide. Just more people driving poorly,” says Chief Matthew Geist.

The chief says there is no room for distractions when it comes to driving. He says his department is trying to raise awareness to prevent crashes on the roadways.

“Two components of the initiative are for education and enforcement. For the education side, we’re issuing information out on our social media platform through NIXLE alerts. We have variable message boards throughout Middlesex with safety messages on them,” Geist says “The enforcement side is just meaningful enforcement through an active and visible patrol force.”

The chief says that the effort comes after noticing an increase in traffic fatalities statewide over the last year. He says that drivers are not the only ones at risk.

“We saw an increase in pedestrian fatalities, bicycle fatalities. Wear your helmets, make sure you’re safe. Keep a good lookout. Make sure drivers see you. Look at them and make sure they see you,” Geist says. “Don’t take any chances.”

He says that safety should take priority over speed and that getting somewhere a minute faster is not worth the risk.