OUR VIEW: Back to Surrey schools safely

Surrey’s school district is B.C.’s largest, with more than 78,000 students.

According to ICBC, five children in B.C. are killed and 370 are injured every year while walking or bicycling, and in school and playground zones, 66 are injured each year. Narrowing that down to the Lower Mainland, two children are killed while walking, 267 are injured in crashes, and in school and playground zones 43 children are injured in traffic crashes each year.

Given Surrey’s huge student population, it’s critical that drivers are especially careful now that school is back in session.

Surrey Mounties remind us that the speed limit in school zones is 30 kilometres per hour from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on school days, with the same rules applying to playground zones dawn until dusk every day.

So don’t be fiddling with your phone while behind the wheel, take special care when backing out of a driveway or garage, be mindful of school buses dropping off kids and do not pass a school bus when its red light is flashing. Only jerks do that, and those who get caught by police will be rewarded with a $368 fine.

ICBC advises parents and caregivers dropping off children in a school zone to have them leave the vehicle on the side closest to the sidewalk. Also, teach your children to stop at the curb, look right and left, use crosswalks and make eye contact with drivers before crossing, even if a walk signal is on.

If there’s one lesson a pedestrian of any age should never learn the hard way, it’s the importance of not staring at a phone while stepping off a curb or crossing a street. It’s an excellent way to get hit.

And as the weather turns, wear bright clothing and reflective gear to help motorists see you.

– Now-Leader