A 28-year-old Princeton resident was in critical condition on Saturday after being hit by a car on Nassau Street on Friday night. He was struck while crossing Nassau Street at a marked crosswalk between Washington Road and Moore Street and sustained a head injury.
“The incident remains under active investigation with the assistance of the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office," Police Chief Matthew Solovay wrote to The Daily Princetonian. "At this time, no additional information will be released.”
The pedestrian was struck by a westbound 2015 Ford Explorer around 11:32 p.m. The driver was identified in the press release as a 39-year-old Princeton resident who cooperated with officers upon their arrival. The speed of the vehicle remains undisclosed.
Nassau Street was closed to all traffic for approximately three-and-a-half hours while the Princeton Police Department Traffic Safety Bureau investigated the incident, with assistance from the New Jersey Department of Transportation Diversion Team and the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office Serious Collision Response Team.
Additional details about the incident, including the vehicle’s speed and the driver’s condition, remain undisclosed as the investigation continues.
There have been three reported instances of driving while intoxicated (DWI) in Princeton this month and three additional reported instances in November. Each of those six instances resulted in an arrest. It was not clear if Friday’s accident was a DWI incident.
In October, there were eight DWI arrests, including incidents involving a two-car, head-on collision on South Harrison Street, a two-vehicle crash on Stockton Street, and a crash on North Harrison Street.
As of the public report released on Dec. 9, there have been 39 DWI incidents in Princeton this year, surpassing last year’s total. Solovay identified this as a point of concern at a recent Princeton town council meeting. Additionally, there were three DWI arrests within one week in December — more than November’s average of less than one per week, and October’s rate of roughly two per week.
In October, the department reinstated the Street Smart campaign, aimed at promoting safer driving through increased signage and free beverage incentives at three local cafés, citing the need for “frightfully important focus on pedestrian safety.”
The police department is also seeking new funding for its “PD Provides your DD” program, which was launched two years ago and partners with Uber and local bars and restaurants to cover up to $15 ride home.
Although Solovay reported at the town council meeting that the funds for this program have been exhausted, Princeton’s police department is looking to get funding through the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety. The department did not respond to a request for comment about the new funding.
Anyone with information regarding the Friday incident has been asked to contact Ptl. Jon Myzie of the Princeton Police Department Traffic Safety Bureau at jmyzie@princetonnj.gov or (609) 921-2100.
Luke Grippo is an assistant News editor for the ‘Prince.’ He is from South Jersey and typically covers University and town politics, on a national, regional, and local scale. He can be reached at lg5452[at]princeton.edu.
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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