LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Class begins bright and early Monday morning for more than 300,000 Clark County School District students.
Before they take a step on campus, they must arrive there safely. Here are a few tips to keep in mind for adult drivers and students:
- Be cautious while driving in school zones and residential areas
- Prepare to stop if you are behind a school bus when their yellow and red lights flash
- If you are traveling in the opposite direction and there is a physical barrier (either grass, concrete, or a guardrail) you can proceed, but still remain on high alert for kids crossing
- Students should arrive at the bus stop a little early and stay away from the curb
- Students should pay attention to the traffic signals and stay inside the cross walk
- Students who ride their bike to school should always wear their helmet and ride in the same direction of traffic
“At twenty miles per hour, 10% of the population would not survive. That 10% is the elder and children. It’s because they don’t have the body mass to absorb the crash force. That’s why we ask you to slow down because if you hit a child they won’t live — plain and simple,” said Erin Breen with UNLV’s Vulnerable Road Users Project.
“So far this year, we’ve had 38 fatalities for pedestrians and these are people who are just out walking, riding their bikes,” said CCSDPD Lt. Bryan Zink. “We just really need to remind everybody to slow down and pay attention and to the pedestrians out there also, we always like to stress: Use the crosswalks, they are here for a reason.”
The Red Cross of Southern Nevada encourages families to create an emergency plan, so everyone knows who to contact and where to go if something happens while children are at school and parents are at work.
