$405,000 New Jersey Car Accident Settlement for New York Man's Personal Injuries
The city of Bayonne officially agreed to a $405,000 New Jersey car accident settlement yesterday for a man’s personal injuries in a 2003 crash caused in large part by an unsafe Jersey City highway. According to a story in The Jersey Journal, New Jersey City Health Director Brigid Breivogel was driving south on Route 440 on September 9, 2003 when her 2001 Saturn collided with a 1998 Lincoln driven by Elliot Berberena, who had the green light at the time and suffered various physical injuries. Breivogel said that she could not see the green light because a tractor was in front of her, and a private engineer later agreed that Route 440 is unsafe when cars and tractors use it at the same time.
Berbenera claimed that he sustained an injured left shoulder and lower back as a result of the car accident, and filed a negligence suit against the city and Breivogel. The trial was scheduled to begin on February 5th, but the New Jersey auto accident settlement was reached on January 31st. According to the story, Bayonne will pay the New Jersey car accident settlement in three installments of $135,000 to Berbenera, beginning on March 14th of this year and ending on July 15, 2008.
The private engineer, Leonard Goldblatt, offered two solutions to prevent similar car accidents from occurring in the future. He suggested that tractors no longer be allowed on Route 440 or that the highway’s traffic control devices be modified in order for tall tractor trailers to safely use it.