By Cheryl Jahn

School Zones are back in effect

Sep 3, 2024 | 11:52 AM

PRINCE GEORGE – It was controlled chaos at Peden Hill Elementary School this morning, as parents dropped their young ones off for the first day of school. And police were on hand to remind motorists of the return of school zone hours. So, from 8 a.m. to five p.m. Monday to Friday on all school days, it’s 30 kilometres an hour. And the price for speeding through a school zone is hefty.

“It depends on the amount that you are going over the speed limit. If it’s from 0 to 20 kilometres an hour [over the speed limited], there’s one fine, if it’s 21 to 40 [kilometres] it’s another fine,” explains Corporal Jennifer Cooper with the Prince George RCMP. “If you happen to be going 41 kilometres or more over the speed limit, in addition to the fines you’ll receive, we’ll also impound your vehicle for seven days.”

And this week is particularly hectic, with kids reuniting with former classmates and so on. It’s distracting.

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“Kids are too excited right now. We can’t put the burden on them to remember all of their road safety rules.”

And it’s not just school zones. There are many students who arrive at school on a bus.

“If a police officer is present and observes the driver passing a school bus. They could be stopped and issued a violation ticket. Three points on their driver’s license and $368,” says Mike Burt, Program Coordinator with the Prince George RCMP. Community Policing was out this morning, clocking motorists. And they will be out for a while.

“The volunteers have a speed board with them that displays the driver’s speed. They can record all of the information, so they’ll record the driver’s speed, make and model of the vehicle and some further information. And that all goes back to the detachment. And if all the right checkboxes are met, the registered owner of that vehicle may receive a warning letter from the detachment advising them of the infractions observed.”

Corporal Jennifer Cooper says this is the time of year when parents need to sit down with their kids to talk about safety.

“Sit them down, review road safety rules, crossing at corners or marked crosswalks, only making sure that they’re looking both ways before they step off the sidewalk, making eye contact with the driver. So they know that the driver knows that they’re there.”