With many students going back to school, officials remind motorists to be on the lookout for a few things when you are driving around the area.
The first thing to be mindful of is school busses. Busses make frequent stops. Illinois law when it comes to busses making stops is that traffic must stop on non-divided roadways. If there is a barrier such as a median or concrete divider, traffic flowing the opposite way of which the bus is going can continue while the traffic in the same direction of the bus must stop in all lanes. In a non-divided highway or roadway, all lanes of traffic must stop, no matter which direction the traffic is going. The first offense for passing a stopped school bus illegally is a $300 fine and a 3 month suspension of a driver’s license. For additional offenses, it is a $1,000 fine and a minimum of a 1 year suspension of a driver’s license. Court supervision is not eligible for these violations.
Another thing to be mindful of is speeds in school zones. School zones have slower speed limits in place for not only the safety of children walking to and from school, but for potential overflow traffic from those dropping off and pickup up at schools. The maximum speed in a school zone is 20 miles per hour on days where students are present during posted hours unless otherwise posted. The first fine for speeding in a school zone is $150 while multiple time offenders get a $300 ticket. If you are going 25 over in a school zone, it is a Class B Misdemeanor that can carry up to $2500 in fines and a 6 month jail sentence. If it is 35 miles per over the limit, the jail sentence raises to up to 12 months.
Area educators and police officers want this to be a safe school year for everyone.