TRENTON — Deaths on New Jersey's roads hit an all-time low in 2013.

The State Police reported 542 fatalities on the state’s highways and main streets, down 8 percent from 2012 and the lowest since the agency began keeping records in the 1940s, according to statistics as of Tuesday. The previous record low was set in 2010, when State Police reported 556 fatalities.

Overall, there were 506 fatal accidents, about 9 percent fewer than in 2012.

The decline continues a long-term trend in New Jersey, which has seen traffic deaths cut in half from the 1,160 in 1981, the high point of the past three decades.

"The numbers of cars on the road are higher, but the safety features have really improved," said Lt. Stephen Jones, a spokesman for the State Police. "We obviously hope all the messages from multiple police agencies, from the local to the federal level, are getting through."

Among the safety improvements, Jones said, are the increased use of seat belts, better crash test capabilities and the proliferation of multiple air bags in vehicles.

Still, the number of deaths remains at an unacceptable level, he said.

"The biggest challenge we’re looking at now is that the distracted driving temptations are only going to increase with the multitude of wireless mobile technologies that people are carrying now," he said. "That’s our biggest fight, to get people to stop using devices."

The State Police said additional troopers were on duty for New Year’s Eve to watch out for drunken or aggressive driving, as well as those driving while using a cell phone.

"We can’t be everywhere, so the drivers out there on the roads are basically the ones who are going to determine what happens," Jones said. "Foolish behaviors end lives, and we’re out there constantly trying to deter people from those type of behaviors that are going to cause crashes."

The statistics are preliminary and could change if people involved in 2013 accidents die during the new year. More details about accidents — including how many were attributed to drunken driving — will be released in a full report later this year. There were 169 drunken driving deaths in New Jersey in 2012, down from 195 the previous year.

Of those who died on the road in 2013, 304 were drivers, 131 were pedestrians, 93 were passengers and 14 were on bicycles, State Police numbers show.

The 56 deaths on Middlesex County roads were the highest in the state, followed by 47 in Ocean, 41 in Atlantic and 40 in Essex counties.

The State Police reported yesterday that two people died in two accidents during the Christmas holiday period, down from 11 deaths in 11 accidents in 2012. There were four deaths in four accidents during the New Year’s Eve holiday period last year.

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