Hoboken Cops Continue Undercover Traffic Busts, Tickets Adding Up

HOBOKEN, NJ — It didn’t take Hoboken police long after the holidays to resume their citywide “pedestrian decoy” campaign.

After launching their traffic safety campaign earlier this month, Hoboken police officers resumed their plainclothes operation on Wednesday – the day after Christmas – with a decoy operation at 400 Newark Street (see photo below).

Started as a response to numerous “pedestrian safety complaints,” the HPD traffic campaign uses officers dressed in civilian clothes who attempt to cross the street in marked crosswalks. Drivers that do not stop for the officers in the crosswalk, as required by law, may receive a violation for failing to stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk.

According to city officials, the effort is already paying off. During the HPD’s initial operation, officers issued 10 violations at 15th Street and 15 violations at Newark Street, a pair of locations with a “high level of resident complaints,” police said.

• See related article: Hoboken Traffic Crackdown (14 Stop Sign Violations In 2 Hours)

“We must always prioritize the safety of our families and children as they utilize our City streets,” Mayor Ravi Bhalla said. “This initiative represents a critical step forward in increasing pedestrian safety in Hoboken, and I thank Chief Ferrante and the Hoboken Police Department for making it a high priority. I look forward to working with HPD and our community to introduce additional safety initiatives in 2019 to prevent any and all traffic-related injuries or fatalities.”

To help improve pedestrian safety and responsible driving from motorists, the Hoboken Police Department, in partnership with the City of Hoboken, has created an email to address to send complaints directly to the Hoboken Police Traffic Bureau. For any traffic, moving violation concerns, or any other pedestrian safety complaint occurring in the City of Hoboken, residents can send any video, picture, complaints, questions and feedback to a newly created email address: traffic@hobokenpd.org.

“We have created this new email address so that we can formally receive all complaints and have our Traffic Bureau Supervisors assess them and come up with strategies and initiatives to properly address them,” Police Chief Ken Ferrante said.

• See related article: Cars Won't Stop For Kids, Stroller At Hoboken Crosswalk (VIDEO)
• See related article: Hoboken Traffic Cop Kept Cool As People Cursed At Him: Chief

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Main Photo: A member of the Hoboken Police Department performs a decoy operation (City of Hoboken)