TACOMA, Wash. — As Tacoma students head back to school in person, school zones are going back into effect, and drivers caught going over the speed limit could face steep consequences.
Safe Routes to School is a city program that finds the best routes for students as they walk, or ride, to class.
“Children deserve safe places to walk and roll, and that starts with the trip to school,” said Carrie Wilhelme, senior transportation planner for Tacoma’s Public Works Traffic Programs.
In order to create stronger school zones, Tacoma recently installed school zone beacons on its arterial roads. This lets drivers know when they’ve entered a school zone, and that it’s time to slow down.
“When those are flashing, you need to be driving a maximum of 20 miles per hour,” advised Wilhelme.
The price for going over the speed limit is steep. Fines can reach over $800 if you’re caught going too fast in Tacoma’s school zones.
Laws around school zones are so strict because transportation officials have designated them as safe crossings for school children.
"We're trying to funnel kids to this specific school crossing," Wilhelme said.
Since the pandemic, more people have taken up walking along the city streets, but now that school is about to start, Wilhelme says it’s more important than ever that drivers remember the rules of the road when it comes to pedestrians.
“As we’ve seen this increase in walkers and bikers, in part due to the pandemic because we know that’s a healthy way to be out and about, both for mental health and physical health, we need to be more aware as drivers of the rights of those walkers and bikers.”