The program is intended to increase enforcement and awareness of the state law requiring drivers to stop for people in crosswalks. The Triangle routinely ranks as one of the most dangerous cities for pedestrians<\/a><\/span><\/span>. Around 400 people are struck annually and around 350 of those are injured or killed. As part of the campaign, state Department of Transportation trained police officers \u2014 around 12 from the Raleigh Police Department and some from surrounding areas and colleges \u2014 on how to enforce these laws.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are using targeted enforcement,\u201d said to Jennifer Baldwin, bicycle and pedestrian coordinator for the City of Raleigh Office of Transportation Planning. \u201cTheir intent is to make this an education campaign; their intent is not to issue a bunch of citations.\u201d<\/p>\n How Enforcement Works It’s one of the most dangerous roads in Raleigh for pedestrians, according to the UNC Highway Safety Research Center and reported by The News & Observer<\/a><\/span><\/span>.<\/p>\n During an enforcement period, the RPD places a decoy plainclothes officer and sets up stopping zones at safe distances after the crosswalk to warn or ticket motorists.<\/p>\n \u201cThe officer initially will step into the crosswalk to signal that he is going to cross the crosswalk and, as soon as the vehicle complies, crosses the street,\u201d King said.<\/p>\n He said most people let the officer cross, but often the officer was forced to stop mid-way across the crosswalk to account for traffic on the other side of the road.<\/p>\n Those who fail to yield are pulled over and issued a warning and a pamphlet explaining the program. Those driving recklessly are ticketed. About 50 drivers received warnings during a one-day stopping operation at the Hillsborough Street crosswalk two weeks ago, while six received tickets.<\/p>\n [media-credit name=”Image Provided by City of Raleigh” align=”aligncenter” width=”588″] \u201cI had one complaint that I received about the Hillsborough Street crosswalk serving the YMCA,\u201d Baldwin said. \u201cBut, we received several complaints by pedestrians and people (using the crosswalk) at the YMCA previously, and I forwarded that information to the RPD.\u201d<\/p>\n Jessica Tisdale, who received a ticket for failing to yield to a pedestrian at the Hillsborough Street crosswalk, intends to contest the charges.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s around a $230 ticket, which slightly ridiculous,\u201d she said. \u201cI plan to fight it, saying that he wasn\u2019t in the crosswalk. Because, in my mind, when I was going through there, I was lawfully abiding, I wasn\u2019t going to hurt anyone or hit anyone.\u201d<\/p>\n Tisdale said she had not heard of the Watch For Me NC campaign before her ticket, but looked it up afterward. As a regular patron of the Hillsborough Street crosswalk, she thinks the campaign in general is a good idea.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a pedestrian in the neighborhood; I ride my bike, I take the bus,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd I think that\u2019s a great program. But to write me a ticket is ridiculous.\u201d<\/p>\n Tisdale admits she was on her cell phone while driving, but that remains legal in North Carolina. And, she said, the crosswalk needs some improvements. There are no light signals for either the driver or the pedestrian, just a painted crosswalk on the street.<\/p>\n \u201cThe thing with that crosswalk right there, is there\u2019s no lights there, it\u2019s just a crosswalk,\u201d she said. \u201cA lot of people stand there and chit chat with their gym friends, and they\u2019re not necessarily actively moving. It\u2019s a bad area in general.\u201d<\/p>\n Tisdale said the money spent on this enforcement would be better served making the crosswalk more visible to drivers.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know if this sounds to other people like entrapment,\u201d she said. \u201cBut I just think the whole system of putting an officer in plain clothing out there is not OK.\u201d<\/p>\n But King said this system is well established for enforcement operations.<\/p>\n \u201cThe use of a plainclothes officer in the crosswalk \u2014 that\u2019s something that the state has adopted through the UNC research lab,\u201d he said. \u201cSo this is not something we just concocted. It\u2019s something that\u2019s being done across the state, and it\u2019s been vetted through the state attorneys.\u201d<\/p>\n The education aspect of the program began in August, with bus ads and visits to Citizens Advisory Council meetings near where the enforcement was to take place.<\/p>\n The police, Baldwin said, \u201cwouldn\u2019t do any enforcement without a large-scale education campaign, because they didn\u2019t think it would be fair to start enforcing without letting people know.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.raleighpublicrecord.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/watch_for_me_logo.jpg\" "\\"watch_for_me_logo\\""){kind=logo}
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\n<\/strong>Sgt. J.J. King of the Raleigh Police Department said they are focusing their enforcement efforts on the most dangerous intersections in Raleigh, especially the crosswalk in front of the John M. Alexander YMCA on Hillsborough Street.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.raleighpublicrecord.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/WFM_WhatsACrosswalk.jpeg\" "\\"WFM_WhatsACrosswalk\\"")
<\/a>[\/media-credit]Resident Reaction
\n<\/strong>Despite the increased presence of police at these intersections, most drivers have not complained about the enforcement.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.raleighpublicrecord.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/5018382527_4b75ce6db3_z-600x395.jpg\" "\\"Hillsborough")
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