Parents guilty of risky driving near schools: CAA

Parents may be more to blame than they think when it comes to risky behaviour behind the wheel in school zones.

According to a study bythe Canadian Automobile Association, parents committed one-third of the driving infractions witnessed in school zones just after the start of the school year.

This isthe third year in a row CAA-Quebechas set out to monitor 11school zones during morning rush hourto gauge safety and how well the areas are managed.

On Sept. 12, 223 of the road infractions witnessed between 7 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. were committed by parents, according to the CAA.

The bad behaviours included double parking to let kids out or allowing children to jump out of the vehicle into oncoming traffic.

Speeding most common

But the most common violation, according to CAA-Quebecs Cedric Essiminy, was speeding.

The speed limit is reduced to 30 km/h in every school zone.

"We saw people going at 40, 46, 47 kilometres [an hour]," he said. "Those people don't have any excuse."

That came as no surprise to many parents who walk their children to school.

"Its something that is a concern as a parent with two children . . . I see the speed that people are driving," said Jonathan Frankel.

"Definitely more reinforcement of school zones and of speeding in school zones would be helpful."

Last year, there were 52 crashes reported in school zones in Montreal.

Cmdr. Pierre Rousseau of the Montreal police said they run an enforcement campaign at the start of every scool year, re-emphasizing to drivers the importance of safety around schools.

They dont keep track of how many parents are committing violations but, in general, theyre pretty cognizant of the rules, he said.

Stiff fines

Drivers who arent getting the message, however,can face stiff fines.

"It starts around $100 when it's minor, but it goes highvery high," Rousseau said. "The [regulation] is very severe about the speed limit."

The safety issues differ from school to school, so the CAA is encouraging school administrators to make a plan based on their traffic situation.

"Each school must know what are the major problems that they have and then they can slightly adjust how they welcome the students and they can make those adjustment to have a safer morning," Essiminy said.