BARRHEAD - Barrhead Elementary School (BES) wants to remind motorists to slow down between the lower grade school and high schools in the service lane/parking lot.
This is why the school asked Pembina Hills School Division's (PHSD) facility department to install several speed limit signs. The 10 km/h signs were installed last week.
School principal Dale Bujold said although there was a 10 km/h speed limit on the east side entrance to the service lane in front of the schools, they were still having issues with people driving too fast in the service lane.
"We have a playground area, and there is the potential for kids to run out into the [service lane] chasing balls, running to their parents' cars, et cetera," he said. "We hope the signs will not only slow people down but serve as a reminder to watch for students who might dash into the lane."
Other school zone and school bus issues
PHSD transportation director Shantelle Haitel said the school division still has issues with school bus fly-bys and people speeding through school zones in the Barrhead area. The latter is especially true at the division's rural schools.
'Fly-bys' refer to drivers who pass school buses stopped on a roadway with their red lights flashing, a violation of Alberta's Traffic Safety Act. This act carries a penalty of $549 and six demerit points, a hefty price to pay for not prioritizing student safety.
Haitel said the Barrhead RCMP has enlisted the help of the two Barrhead municipalities' community peace officers (CPOs) to catch drivers of fly-by school buses. She added that she now contacts the bylaw officers directly when she receives reports of the activity.
"It is definitely still a problem," she said, adding the two CPOs have written several fly-by violation tickets in recent months. "We've also increased the number of external cameras on our buses, so we are catching a lot more licence plates, which allows the RCMP to follow up and press charges."
Haitel said fly-bys are more than just a rural school bus route issue, saying the division has received several complaints from their in-town bus routes.
"We have one stop in town that gets fly-bys almost every time we have to stop there," she said, referring to the stop on Highway 18 at the intersection of 49th Street and 61st Avenue near the Neighbourhood Inn. "Motorists don't seem to know that all four lanes of traffic have to stop, even if they are in the fourth lane."
Haitel added that the stops on Highway 33 are always problematic for rural bus routes.
"Last week, we had a motorist from Edmonton actually hit one of our extended stop arms on Highway 33," she said.
As for what residents should do if they see a driver conducting a fly-by, Haitel suggested that they attempt to get a licence plate as well as other vehicle identifiers, such as make, model and colour, along with the time and location and report it to the town or county CPOs, and/or the RCMP as soon as possible.
She also noted that residents can also call the PHSD transportation office at 780-674-8510, which will forward the complaint to the authorities.
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
