Everything Traffic Safety
This coming week, our local law enforcement agencies will be conducting speed patrols focusing on the routes that kids and families take to get to and from school. Here’s a PSA for the event made locally with some kids in my neighborhood:
Q: Heading west on Fraser St, off of Woburn, there is a school speed limit 20 MPH sign and a flashing light. There is no sign indicating where the school zone ends, so I usually assume it ends where the school zone sign starts on the opposite side of the road (the sign for drivers heading east). Where does it really end? And why isn’t there a sign?
Q: I always wonder about what “when children are present” on school zone signs means. Does that mean just during school hours or any time you see children? Also does it apply during school hours during the summer vacation (and how are we to know the vacation times?)
A: I thought this would be easy to answer, but it turns out that reading the law about school zone speed limits confuses as much as it clarifies. There’s a good reason many school zones are getting updated with flashing beacons instead of the “when children are present” plaque. But let’s get back to the question.
Continue reading “School Zones – What Does “When Children Are Present” Really Mean?””
I’ve been hearing from folks who, as the school year starts up again, have not so much a question as a common request: “Can you please remind people to drive safe, especially around schools?” Of course I can. As requested: “Hey drivers, be safe on the road, and watch out for the kids.” I’d also like to go a couple steps further by expanding our concept of “kids” and why this time of year is extra-risky for drivers. Continue reading “Back-to-School Driving Reminders”
Q: Why do School zones exist in areas with no school nearby? I have noticed locations on Fraser Street and Orleans Street where it says school zones yet there are no schools nearby. In both of these locations the nearest public school is over a mile away and numerous roads exist closer to the school that aren’t designated school zones.
A: Not that I don’t trust you, but I drove out to the locations you described, and I couldn’t find any schools nearby either. At first I was as puzzled as you, so I reviewed RCW 46.61.440, the state law regarding school zones. I discovered that school zones come in two flavors. Most frequently, school zones are the 20 MPH areas found on roads that border a school. These zones extend up to 300 feet from the edge of the school property. As drivers, we all are (or should be) familiar with these school zones. Continue reading “Why are there school zones without schools?”