PHOTOS & VIDEO: In just 3 hours, 236 motorists were pulled over during the Lakewood Police Department’s Pedestrian Safety initiative conducted on Clifton Avenue today.
In an effort to combat the growing number of pedestrian-related motor vehicle accidents, the Lakewood Police Department launched a new program this morning aimed at improving awareness among drivers and pedestrians about their shared responsibility for safety.
As a plainclothes Lakewood Police Officer posing as a pedestrian attempted to cross a Clifton Avenue Crosswalk, another plainclothes Officer – with a radio in hand – watched.
So when motorists failed to stop for the officer standing in the roadway, the other officer radioed in the car to waiting officers on the next block. Those vehicles were then stopped and given a warning, along with a card detailing the violation they’d just committed.
In one particular incident, captured on the TLS video, a motorist can be seen driving around another motorist who had stopped for a pedestrian, and came within a couple of feet of the man crossing the road.
The violation for not stopping in for a pedestrian in a NJ Crosswalk, could be 2 Points and a fine of $200, among other penalties. [SEE FULL CARD HERE].
“Pedestrian safety is an issue that affects our entire community; young and old, drivers and walkers, in the day and at night,” Police Chief Rob Lawson told TLS. “Many avoidable injuries and fatalities occur as a result of inattentiveness of either the driver or the pedestrian. The roadways should be safe places for everyone regardless of their transportation mode.”
In the last year, over 100 pedestrians were struck by vehicles in Lakewood, a Lakewood Police Officer on the detail told TLS.
Over the next few weeks, the Police Department will be conducting several more of these ‘warning’ details, before actual summonses are issued, police said.
“Our new Pedestrian Safety Initiative program focuses on educating our citizens on the perils facing pedestrians and how they can help make the road a safer environment for those traveling by foot,” Lawson said.
“In addition,” says the Chief, “pedestrians must obey pedestrian signals and use crosswalks at signalized intersections.”
“By working together, we can all make our streets safer.” TLS.
Do it every day.
Now this is called working together. Instead of giving three hundred tickets and making money, the police department is putting safety first so drivers can learn the rules of the road. Theybdrive safer the pedestrian are safer and policeman respected. It’s a win win win situation.
Can you post a PDF of the card they gave out? i would like to see the exceptions.
Please do this more often in more locations
@Yes!” You couldn’t be any more wrong! in driver’s ed we learn the rules of the road you should always know the pedestrian has the right of way! They should have all been ticketed!
Very gracious of the LPD to give out multiple ‘warnings’ . Thank you! Of cousre there will be complaints as soon as the warning period is over and the ticket books come out.
Very good idea. Here’s the problem though. Lakewood in certain ways has become like New York. How are you supposed to drive down Clifton Ave. when you can literally wait for half an hour while pedestrians are flooding into crosswalks? Also, if you were a pedestrian, would you risk finding out if the car rolling down the road toward you is actually one of the small minority who is actually focusing totally on the road? There has to be some sort of a law too around here that the pedestrian should not actually cross until the vehicle comes to a complete stop BEFORE the croosswalk, no? I’d love to hear the answer to these questions…Thanks!
They certainly picked the right intersection!!!! Any talk of building a bypass road around this whole town?
I would think unless you are in an emergency VEHICLE with lights & sirens blaring Pedestrians have the right of way at EVERY Crosswalk. Now crossing against the lights is a different story..if you jump out in traffic is also a problem
GREAT IDEA!!!! they should also publicize the date that they will start issueing summonses
How about pulling over the PEOPLE that jaywalk across Clifton Avenue. I hate traveling on that road because you need eyes in back of your head to make sure you don’t run over anyone who doesn’t use the designated crosswalks. Add in the constant ‘conga-line’ of people that just walk right in front of the oncoming cars expecting the cars to skid to a stop for them. I think this law is being abused by the walkers more than the drivers at times. This action needs to go both ways.
Kudos to the Lakewood PD for not ticketing anyone and using this as an exercise in education as opposed to a money grab. Great job and keep up the good work!
Now lets see the police give out tickets to jay walkers! There is no law that cars need to stop for someone getting ready to cross. If someone is in the process of crossing the street then drivers need to stop. I’ve seen many people just walk into the street into traffic moving 35mph thinking they have the right of way and traffic must stop. That’s called jay walking!
I hope the police are checking for seat belts and childrens car seats.
Please do this on the corner of Rt9 & spruce
now lets get the gangs
ty
Great Idea BUT WHY DO I SEE SOME COPS NOT ON A CALL GOING THROUGH CROSSWALKS & NOT STOPPING FOR PEDESTRIANS! HUH?
So, lets recap. Instead of handing out tickets and making roughly (at maximum fine) 47,000 dollars, and enforcing a law that was passed in 2010, we paid for nifty little flyers to be handed out to people who broke the law. Am I correct?
Why aren’t they going after these obnoxious PEDESTRIANS in Lakewood who think they’re invincible and just blatantly walk out in front of drivers thinking “Oh, they’ll stop. I have the right of way.” Granted, yes, the DO have more of the right of way, but for common sense’s SAKE, THEY need to realize they can’t just “go” when THEY feel like. THEY DON’T OWN THE ROAD. There is a HE** of a LOT more of that going on. EVERYONE just needs to FOLLOW THE LIGHT/SIGNALS.
All I see is everyone complaining. Welcome to Lakewood.
THANK YOU LPD for finally trying to work on the insane driving habits of many Lakewood residents. The quiet law-abiding minority in this town supports your efforts to root out illegal driving habits and to ensure the safety of Lakewood’s children and their parents.
I bet they could have had a lot of impounded vehicles if they checked to see if all the vehicles they stopped had insurance.
Now the next thing that needs to be done is stop people from walking on the roads instead of the sidewalks. I have driven down a street with people walking down the middle and looking at me like I am in the wrong. Roads are for traffic, sidewalks for the people.
Yay I was 1 of the lucky 230!!!
Thank you to LPD for doing this to educate everyone. Yes, the cars need to stop when there is a pedestrian in the street, but when the law first came out I went into the police station and spoke to the officer in charge. He told me that the law actually is that that if a pedestrian steps foot into the street the cars must stop, but the pedestrian is not to step foot into the street without making sure there are no cars coming. If he does anyway, the pedestrian can get a ticket for abstructing traffic along with the car’s driver for not stopping.
How about doing this with STOP signs & for talking on cell phones……
What a stupid law!
Not practical in the least.
Let’s all short stop cuz someone may want to cross
Who was the smarty who thought up the crosswalks on Route 9?!? Dou you think I’m going to stop in the middle of a state highway to let somebody cross?
#25 you took the words right out of my mouth…yes everyone needs to slow down and drive safely, but lakewood is a city and a city needs traffic lights not safety stops!
To LPD what about rt 88 by french press coffee cars never ever stop by that crosswalk what about doing something about that its very hard to cross from npgs on main st to go and buy coffee from there do something about it please
I follow @lakewoodscoop and was very disappointed that you didn’t send out a message earlier in the day to warn drivers about what was going on.
I was pulled over and there was nobody trying to cross ! I saw the cops so I watched with caution and got pulled over. There is no way to drive safely and watch all sidewalks to see if someone is waiting to cross !
With most car speeding on Rt. 9, stopping for people in the crosswalk can be dangerous….I’ve nearly been rear-ended several times while complying with the law. On Chestnut Street, a woman in a van swung
around me while I was stopped at a crosswalk and almost him the
children crossing the street.
This is one of the stupider laws that NJ drivers have to live with. Then they made crosswalks on Rt 9- WHO is stopping for pedestrians when they are going 40 mph???? They need to seriously rethink this law, because it’s not the drivers who are causing the accidents, it’s the lawmakers!!!
not a good law more research needs to be conducted . people just walk across and make cars short stop causing multiple collisions.
I like this I think they should stay there and actually give tickets for motorists that don’t stop. It’s crazy how people just think its funny to ignore pedestrians
It is a stupid law. I am glad the New Training Sgt. was on the scene!! What better place to be!!
JOB WELL DONE>>> ITS ABOUT TIME THESE PEOPLE RECEIVE TICKETS FOR VIOLATING THE LAW>>>> :):):):):)
Lenny has a cool red shirt on!!!!
Stop giving warning and start giving tickets. How many warnings will people get before they get a ticket???
People should know the laws and not have to “learn” them!
to Quote “What a stupid law!
Not practical in the least.
Let’s all short stop cuz someone may want to cross”
I think your comment is stupid ,once again we have people in this town that think if they do not agree with a law they can just ignore it as proven by the fact that was even done by the police
this had to be the most brillant thing the LPD could do for our community. Lets JUst all work together and make this the safest town. We can all benefit from this. THANK YOU LPD!
how about decoying for improper use of cell phones
To ,,29 ” are you for real ??How can you learn /
I fully agree with those who said it’s a stupid law. Pedestrians should never have the right of way. There’s no reason for them to come before the cars. It’s another dumb law by some bored congressmen. Now we all have to suffer the consequence.
thank you lpd
it was a good idea but they should have given out tickets. Warnings in this town mean nothing so all the drivers that were stopped will say yes and then do it again another day.
i do agree that many people just walk into street because they think they have the right away. it might be the law but you also have to have common sense we stepping into the street.
Hello Lakewood, I think we finally need to have pedestrian licenses. Are you kidding me? this ridiculous law needs to be repealed! If some bozo steps off the curb into traffic is that safe to have a driver slam on his/her brakes or worse to swerve off the road to avoid hitting them? why are pedestrians assumed to be in the right? It’s the kamikaze guys that alarm me the most; their belief in the “law” protecting them is greater than their ingrained sense of self preservation, and they don’t even bother looking right and left, they just blindly plunge into the road!!! Do you remember your mother teaching you to look both ways??? This is backwards!! Ticket the pedestrians, they’re a public hazard!!
I understand the logic of the pedestrian crosswalk law. The problem here is that the law has a very large grey area such as at what point does the responsibility to yield shift from the pedestrian to the motorist and at precisely what distance from the crosswalk and at what speed. That sounds confusing doesn’t it. Absolutely!!! All the above has to be taken in consideration. As I said it’s not always black or white. This grey area makes for selective enforcement and will result in many ill determined judgement calls by law enforcement.
great job by LPD….but bad job on the townships part….so the town spent money on this program between flyers and police salaries but made no money..as tax payers we complain about money, well this was a great oppertunity to not only enforce the law but to help offset costs…
To Lakewood twp: stop being so cute ,just put up traffic lights in busy walking areas