In the hustle and bustle of the back-to-school season, it’s easy for accidents to happen on the road.
The Seward Police Department urges drivers, walkers and bike riders to slow down, be aware and follow the rules of the road.
“It’s a natural tendency over the summer when the school lights aren’t flashing, we get out of the habit of doing certain things,” Seward Police Chief Brian Peters said. “School’s back in session, and it could be expensive if you don’t follow the rules.”
Peters reminds drivers to leave enough time to get where they’re going, especially when faced with congested streets around schools.
“There’s no reason to be in a rush,” he said.
Drive responsibly and pay attention to driving.
“Stay off your phone. Minimize distractions as you’re driving, whether that’s talking to passengers, texting, using your phone in the car or changing the radio station,” he said.
At crosswalks
Crosswalks are painted at intersections near each school building in Seward. Seward Elementary and St. John Lutheran School have crossing guards on duty before and after school to help kids across the street.
“We want people to be mindful of the crossing guards when they come out into the street,” Peters said. “They do have the authority to stop the traffic.”
Drivers should watch for kids crossing the street outside of crosswalks as well.
“Younger kids, if they’re walking by themselves, they sometimes forget to use the crosswalk. They see their friends across the street and get excited. We want to be careful that they don’t bolt out in front of a car or from in between parked cars,” Peters said.
Drivers may be ticketed for not stopping at an occupied crosswalk.
“If there’s a pedestrian waiting to cross, you are expected to stop and allow them to do so,” he said.
In school zones
School zones are designated areas around a school building where a high concentration of children are present at certain times of day – usually in the morning before school starts and in the afternoon as school lets out.
A school zone extends a block or two in each direction of the school building and is marked with signs and a lower speed limit while flashing lights are activated.
“If you are speeding in a school zone and the flashing light is activated, the fine for speeding doubles,” Peters said. “We could be talking several hundred dollars.”
The speed limit is lower so that drivers have an increased reaction time to respond to situations, such as a child unexpectedly crossing the street.
“We don’t want to write tickets like that,” Peters said. “We want people to slow down and adhere to the posted speed limits.”
During bus stops
When a school bus is stopped, with its red lights flashing and its stop arm extended, drivers should not pass.
“If you violate a school bus restriction, that’s a $500 fine,” Peters said.
Additionally, drivers could be faced with higher expenses or further charges if an accident were to occur because they passed the bus.
“Kids get off the bus, and they may need to cross the street. If you’re immediately behind (the bus), we don’t want people going around because you may not see them, and people approaching the school bus in the other lane need to stop,” he said.
Drivers should remain stopped until the lights are turned off and the stop sign is retracted. This applies in town, on highways and on county roads.
Peters said the only exception is if a driver is traveling on the other side of the road and there’s a median in between them and the school bus.
Seward police have worked with the school district to locate and fine drivers who have violated bus stop laws in the past.
“The school buses in Seward have cameras,” he said. “We had a few incidents last year where people went around a bus when it was stopped with the red lights flashing and the stop arm extended. We were able to use the bus camera system to identify the vehicle.”
Buses are required to come to a full stop at railroad tracks. Yellow flashing lights signal a bus is about to stop, so drivers following the bus should also prepare to stop.
For pedestrians
and riders
Whether walking with an adult or on their own, students should be alert and make good choices when traveling to and from school. This means using crosswalks when available and making eye contact with drivers to make sure they see you before entering the street.
Students riding bikes should wear a helmet and follow the same traffic rules as a car – riding on the right side of the road, stopping at stop signs and signaling turns with hand signals.
Peters said it’s safer for younger children (ages 3-5) to ride on the sidewalk away from vehicles, but they should yield to pedestrians on the sidewalk.
Bikes may be ridden in the street or on the sidewalk everywhere except the downtown area, where riding on the sidewalk is prohibited.
He stressed the importance of cyclists watching for traffic and not relying on drivers to stop.
“There’s been a couple of instances in the last several years that we’ve had kids hit by cars,” he said.
“There should be no more than one person on a bike unless it’s a bike designed for more than one person,” Peters said. “That means no kids riding on the handlebars or on the pegs on the back. It’s not safe and not legal.”
He also reminds riders to lock up their bikes when not in use to prevent theft.
