After receiving numerous complaints about drivers disobeying school zone rules, Airdrie RCMP has released some tips as a reminder of how drivers should behave in school zones.

Cst. Dan Martin said the problem is widespread and isn't isolated to a single area.

"We don't have one school zone that is worse than the other. We have several schools in the city of Airdrie and we seem to have problems at most of them."

Cst. Martin said the main message they are trying to get out is to be patient when dropping off and picking up kids from schools.

"That goes for pedestrians just as it does for drivers. There's a lot of people going into a school and there's a lot of people coming out of a school in a very small time period. If people take their time, prepare to be in the school zone for several minutes, I think everything will go a lot smoother."

RCMP also remind drivers that the speed limit in school zones is 30 km/hr, U-turns are illegal in school zones and you should make sure you aren't ignoring No Parking signs. Pedestrians should make sure they are always using crosswalks.

Martin said RCMP and Airdrie Municipal Enforcement routinely patrol school zones, although they can't be everywhere at once. In the coming weeks, they'll step up their efforts.

"I can guarantee that Municipal Enforcement and Airdrie RCMP will be in school zones over the next few weeks with some enhanced patrols just to try and stop some of the illegal infractions and hopefully lead to kids getting to school a little bit safer."

 

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