Sept. 8, 2021 - Keeping children safe in school is important, and the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission reminds everyone that safely getting students to school and home again is as important as ever.
While the pandemic has pushed many students back into remote learning, schools across Louisiana are open for face-to-face learning, and excited children are walking, running, and biking to school while cars and buses line up to pick up and drop off even more children. Drivers who have become accustomed to zipping through school zones over the summer may need a refresher lesson.
“School zones are only as safe as the drivers who pass through them,” LHSC Executive Director Lisa Freeman said. “We all need to be reminded to slow down and pay attention to our surroundings in a school zone.”
Louisiana law bans using any hand-held device while driving through an active school zone. But drivers in a school zone should avoid any activity that distracts them from being fully engaged in driving, Freeman said.
Drivers also should be aware of school buses’ picking up and dropping off students. According to the National Safety Council, most children who are killed in bus-related incidents are 4-7 years old and are hit by a bus or by a driver who is illegally passing a bus.
“Children are unpredictable and often are unaware of risks,” Freeman said. “It’s up to us to watch out for them, and that starts with being alert and prepared behind the wheel.”
For more information, check out the National Safety Council’s school zone and school bus safety tips here.
