Tips and reminders to help school kids stay safe this school year from Alberta RCMP Traffic – Whitecourt Unit Cst. Greg Simon

It might still be summer right now, but in just a few days, school buses will be back on the road, carrying precious cargo inside, youngsters will be walking to and from school, and school zones will be back in effect.

The provincial school zones times are different from the times for Whitecourt, thanks to a bylaw that sets our community apart from others. Rather than having multiple times throughout the day where motorists could do 50km/h near a school, Whitecourt school zones are in effect from 8 am until 4:30 pm.

“It is Whitecourt specific. If you go to Mayerthorpe, for example, they still have the provincial hours,” explained Constable Greg Simon (A/NCO i/c) of Alberta RCMP Traffic – Whitecourt Unit. “I love it. It takes out needing to remember the times. Am I outside the hours or not? It used to be from 8:00 am to 9:30 am, from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm, and then again from 3:00 pm until 4:30 pm. It’s a lot nicer not to have the provincial breakdowns because it wasn’t necessarily listed on the sign, and you were expected to know it. We used to do magnets and stickers that we would give out to remind people, but it’s nice now to have it just be from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm.”

Cst. Simon said Whitecourt’s flat timeline is good for the public, officers, and schools. “When you drive by the schools, outside of the provincial hours, kids have recess. They can be out there anytime and don’t always pay attention, even with the fences. They might somehow get out there. As enforcement officers and the public, it’s incumbent on us to ensure that kids are safe while they are in the school zone.”

To help remind residents to slow down, as motorists get used to the school routine again, flashing speed limit signs are in busy areas including near Central School and along Mink Creek Road at both St. Mary’s and Percy Baxter. Motorists who ignore signage, are distracted, don’t slow down fast enough upon entering a school zone, or speed up before they leave it, could end up with a ticket.

“We detect speeders in multiple ways. One is by using radar or lidar. The lidar is a handheld device versus the radar, which is in the vehicle, though it can also be in a handheld format. Speeding in school zones is definitely an issue. It takes one time that someone isn’t paying attention, and a child ends up in front of the vehicle. Our unit writes a fair number of school zone tickets,” said Cst. Simon. Officers use multiple vehicles, both marked and unmarked, to keep an eye on motorists.

Not only is it imperative to observe school zones and be extra cautious, but it’s also important to be aware of students away from the school as they commute to and from home. If a child is biking, parents must ensure they know how to cross the road safely. “If you are going to cross the street at the crosswalk, you have to get off your bike and walk your bike across the road to be deemed a pedestrian. If you do not dismount your bike, you are deemed a vehicle. If you were to cause a collision while riding your bike across a crosswalk, technically, you, as the operator of the bicycle, can be at fault for that collision. The proper thing for bike safety with back to school is that if you are going to ride your bike to school and you are going to cross the street, dismount your bike, cross the street safely and then resume pedalling.”

For motorists passing a bus, knowing the rules is key to keeping children safe and money in their pockets. “When the school bus stops on that road, and it has its stop sign out and lights flashing, that directs all traffic to stop, not just the traffic in the lane beside the bus. It includes the vehicles that are coming the other way as well. If you see a school bus with lights on and the stop sign out, you are required to stop no matter what direction you travel, whether you are approaching from behind or the front. Make sure you stop,” explained Cst. Simon.

If a motorist is driving on a four-lane road, traffic in every lane must stop, not just those closest to the bus. “On Mink Creek road, for example, there are four lanes, and everyone is required to stop 50 metres behind and 50 metres in front. The only time that changes is if there is a physical divider between the lanes, such as the divider on Highway 43. In that case, only the lanes on the bus’s side would need to stop.”

The risk of hitting a child over saving a minute in your commute is bad enough, but motorists who do not heed the warnings and stop could get slapped with a hefty ticket. “Passing a bus with its lights flashing and stop sign out is a violation under the Traffic Safety Act and comes with a penalty of $567 and four demerit points.”

As a parent, Constable Simon said teaching children to be safe while commuting to and from school is essential. “Make sure your kids are aware not to go out into the road until they’ve looked to make sure that people are stopping for them. Also, tell them to try and use marked crosswalks where available. Don’t just run out from behind vehicles. Make sure you stop, look, and listen.”

Another way is to teach them how to cross the street properly. “They should signal their cross by putting an arm out straight, parallel to the road because that is an indicator to motorists on the roadway that they would like to cross. It makes it safer for the person trying to cross the road.” Cst. Simon said these are the topics they bring to schools to educate children but that they’ve been unable to over the last two years. He said they hope to get back into the schools this year. Cst. Simon reminds residents and motorists to do their part in keeping children safe and wishes all students a safe and fun school year.