The crosswalk in front of Fairhaven High School was the focus of a police department enforcement/edcucation program. Fairhaven Police Department photo.
By Beth David, Editor
The Fairhaven Police Department received a grant to conduct a pedestrian crosswalk decoy enforcement program in partnership with the Highway Division of the Mass. Office of Grants and Research. Lieutenant Kevin Swain and Safety Officer Scott Coelho kicked off the safety campaign initiative with the assistance of Officer Ian Furtado who was assigned to patrol division for the day.
The first decoy was at Fairhaven High School on November 12. Dozens of students use the crosswalk daily and the decoy was conducted to coincide with school dismissal hours.
Eleven motor vehicle stops were conducted within a two-hour period. During the traffic stop officers educated the operator of the motor vehicle on the crosswalk law and the safety concerns surrounding violations.
The second decoy program was conducted on Sconticut Neck Roat at David Drown Boulevard on November 24. Officers conducted nine stops of violators.
The Fairhaven Police Department reminds all operators of motor vehicles to stop for any pedestrian that is attempting to cross in a crosswalk. Massachusetts General Law Chapter 89 Section 11 states that a motorist must yield, slow, or stop his vehicle for a pedestrian in a crosswalk who is: On the same half of the way as the vehicle; or is approaching from the opposite half of the way and within 10 feet of the vehicle lane.
“When in doubt, JUST STOP! It could save a life,” wrote the department on its Facebook page. “It could also save you $205 which is the fee associated with a ticket for this violation.”
The program will continue throughout 2025. On average 70 pedestrians are killed every year in Mass.
“Let’s not let our Town add to those statistics, so slow down and let those pedestrians cross,” wrote the department on Facebook.
Lt. Swain also briefed the Select Board on that and other safety initiatives the department is running at their meeting on 12/2. He told the board that other programs include increased presence wherever there are complaints of speeding.
“Basically the objective is to improve road safety,” said Lt. Swain.
The department is also looking at “traffic calming measures,” which include flex posts, digital speed signs, and various markings on the road for bike lanes, etc. He said the department is working with public works and the Livable Streets Committee to come up with solutions.
Lt. Swain said he would like to see a full time traffic division so they could assign one or two officers to for traffic enforcement and to respond to traffic complaints. They would also handle traffic for parades and other street events.
SB chairperson Stasia Powers said she was “so impressed with the level of cooperation” between the PD and other departments.
SB member Charles Murphy recalled the memory of his friend Katie Brienzo, who was killed in a crosswalk on Sconticut Neck Road in 2011.
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