Police targeting school zones
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/09/2022 (1262 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
With the new school year set to start today, city police will be focused on school zones and enforcing any law and regulation that serves to protect students and other pedestrians.
Brandon Police Service Sgt. Kirby Sararas said school speed zones and other regulations surrounding road safety outside of schools are intended to keep everyone safe, especially students and pedestrians.
“I think everyone just needs to be mindful that we will be out there targeting these offences and ticketing people who are not abiding by the rules of the road,” Sararas said.
Brandon officers will be paying special attention to school zones this month, on the lookout for speeding, distracted driving, parking offences and other violations.
About 100 tickets were issued during last September’s back-to-school enforcement campaign, with 70 of those being for speeding.
Sararas reminds motorists that school speed zones restrict drivers to 30 kilometres per hour between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., September to June. The limit applies even if students aren’t actually attending school — it still applies if pupils have the day off for teacher development, for example.
The fines for offences associated with keeping schools safe are hefty.
Travelling 20 km/h over the school zone limit will earn a $312 fine.
Passing a school bus that has activated its “stop” arm and has its red lights flashing is a $672 fine under the Highway Traffic Act. On an undivided roadway, traffic travelling in both directions must halt.
Sararas noted that Brandon School Division buses are equipped with cameras to capture images of drivers who fail to stop when the bus activates its warning system. The school division notifies police when a motorist fails to stop.
Failing to yield to pedestrians in a pedestrian corridor is a $74 fine. Parking in or near a pedestrian corridor is a $53 fine under the Highway Traffic Act.
Failing to obey a traffic control device, such as parents parking in an area marked as a no-stopping zone to let their children out, is a $203 penalty. Sararas said parents who do this might think they’re stopping “only for a second,” but “That’s what causes congestion, and that’s what causes the unsafe conditions for pedestrians and motorists.”
CAA Manitoba also urged drivers to be careful in school zones as data from Manitoba Public Insurance shows dangerous driving — such as texting and driving, and excessive speed — is still prevalent.
The number of distracted driving deaths in August and September 2021 fell to 10 compared to 20 in 2020 for the same period, but it was still higher than the average for the same months during 2016-20 (7.8).
Convictions for driving 50 km/h over the speed limit totalled 76 in August and September 2021 compared to the 90 logged for the same period in 2020.
» ihitchen@brandonsun.com