HACKETTSTOWN — Wearing a neon yellow sweat shirt and concealed earpiece, Hackettstown Police Department's pedestrian decoy stepped into the crosswalk yesterday and waited for vehicles to stop.

When vehicles zoomed past the decoy on the intersection of West Plane Street and Route 46 in downtown Hackettstown, a second officer, dressed in orange, would notify officers stationed at Moore Street.

Cars were then directed to officers issuing tickets as part of their continued Pedestrian Multi-Officer Decoy Program. Drivers who fail to stop could face two points on their license, a $200 fine and insurance surcharges.

With a tripod camera aimed at the crosswalk, police now have evidence for drivers who failed to stop.

Hackettstown Police issued 20 tickets for failure to stop for a pedestrian in a crosswalk, and two tickets for other moving violations, according to a news release.

"That's more than what we really wanted in a four-hour period. I think 20 is extremely high. It should be a lot less than that," said Sgt. Darren Tynan.

Out of those 20, Tynan said very few people were truly upset by the ticket; "everyone else knew what they did was wrong."

"That's why we're out there trying to educate," he said. "Hopefully you know now what the law is."

One thing drivers might not know is that when stopping for a pedestrian, the driver must wait until the pedestrian is out of the crosswalk, not just until their path is clear, Tynan said.

There will be future “Pedestrian Safety Programs” as part of the “Be Street Smart Campaign” and the “NJ Pedestrian Safety Program," enforcing pedestrian crossing violations, motorists failing to stop for pedestrians in a crosswalk and for other moving violations throughout the month, for which the Hackettstown Police Department previously received a $10,000 grant from the state Department of Transportation.

Emily Cummins may be reached at ecummins@njnpublishing.com.com Follow her on Twitter @EmilyACummins Find The Warren Reporter on Facebook.