This bill mandates the creation of a weigh-in-motion monitoring program by the New Jersey Department of Transportation (DOT) in collaboration with the Department of Law and Public Safety (DLPS). The program aims to monitor vehicle weights as they approach bridges in poor condition, utilizing weigh-in-motion systems to detect violations of weight limits. Key provisions include the expansion of law enforcement authority to include drivers, operators, owners, lessees, or bailees in the weighing process, as well as the establishment of penalties for non-compliance with weight regulations. The bill also introduces definitions for terms related to enforcement actions and specifies that the DOT and DLPS will determine monitoring system locations based on bridge conditions and historical violation data.

Additionally, the bill stipulates that records of individual vehicle and personal information collected by the monitoring systems are not to be retained or disclosed for unrelated purposes and will not be considered public records. The DOT and DLPS are required to issue notifications upon detecting violations, with a provision for a warning instead of enforcement action for the first 90 days of the program's operation. Both departments must publish annual reports detailing the program's operations, including the number of vehicles weighed and violations recorded, and are tasked with adopting rules and regulations governing the program, including data handling protocols and standards for inspections and enforcement actions.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 39:3-84.3