Driving earlier this week(not in the X) I once again managed to anger a sizable number of drivers, honked horns, fingers, annoyed looks, and so on. It's not the first time it's happened, in fact it seems like it happens all the time. What did I do? I slowed down to 25mph to drive through a school zone(a school w/o a fence and kids running around near the road, no less). Some of the angry drivers roared around me just to pull into the school to pick up their kids. I guess I'm just an asshole. Oh yeah, I'm also that asshole that steps on the brake and pulls over when an emergency vehicle(with lights on) approaches, even if it is going the other direction on an UNdevided road... when will I ever learn...
MV

yeah man, others are the assholes not you.
you are totally justified, don't even sweat it, they're tools and when that speeder goes peelin' through the school zone and pancakes their kid, then maybe they'll thank you for being the one that gets the hell off of the road when EMS is trying to help them.
fuck 'em man, they've got their's comin'

david

What they don't have reduced speed limits in school zone in CA? In Texas that 25mph (school zones are 20mph) would still get you a ticket, and at a special price for being in a school zone. Guess we like our kids more.

Just this morning I saw one of Carrollton finest motorcycle cops writting tickets out front of the kids elemetary school.

This why people should have to get a license before they reproduce.

I past an elementary school ever day on the way to work. I've lost count of

1. Number of parents that stop in the no stopping zone.

2. Who stop in the middle of the street.

3. Zoom up to the school even though it's a reduced speed zone.

4. Pull out into traffic with checking to see if anyone's coming.

There must be something wrong with the people where you live. Oh yeah...California, home of self-absorbed liberal freaks.

You BASTARD!!!

The only place I've ever been where EVERYONE actually slowed down in a school zone was Las Vegas. Guess they must really enforce the speed limit there.

Thats total bullshit -- but totally understandable in CA. Here in AZ the school zone is 15 mph and no one may pass another car in the zone...that means that if I am going 6 mph, everyone else has to go 6 mph too.

People around here are horrible drivers in general but at least they all seem to obey the school zone laws.

At the school my wife teaches at it was so bad that the crossing guards installed a fake camera since our local PD wouldn't do anything about it.

Dangerous here in OK

They put up a mobile speed detector thingy at the local school here, the things that detect your speed and display it on a large screen. Still have people going 40 (normal speed limit) when the 20mph lights are flashing.

You aren't kidding! Motorcycle cops all over the place! Growing up there, I just assumed it was like that everywhere (just about EVERY school zone has flashing lights when active).

Not that I think it's a bad thing.

On a related note, in Vermont they had signs at every freeway entrance advising that it was a state law to use your turn signal when changing lanes. Don't know if it was the signs, aggressive enforcement or what, but it worked - almost everyone used their turn signals...

It was actually refreshing while I was working in Texas to see people slow down in school zones. Of course, there was a traffic officer in front of almost every school out there, which is a rarity in this part of California. There is a school zone right next to the building where the company had moved into and it was downright hilarious to hear how many of my fellow Californians got pulled over for speeding when they came out - even a couple of the VPs got tickets.

Although there are the school zone speed limit signs around all the schools here (with the ever-ambiguous "When Children Are Present" on them), there is only token enforcement and typically it's only done before and after school for the first couple weeks. Oddly enough, the motorcycle traffic officer spends more time around the corner enforcing the "No Left Turn" out of the Post Office parking lot.

I did notice, however, that a neighboring city (Campbell) has recently installed speed indicators high up on utility polls surrounding some of their schools. I can see the solar panels and some sort of big box attached to them, but I think they're for informational purposes and maybe statistics instead of enforcement.

Im gonna get attacked for this but I have to admit to speeding in school zones even when the lights are flashing and Im a mom to boot. I do drop my speed from the normal over the limit but not close enough to the 25 in our NE school zone areas. I always say oh I'll slow down but once I get down to 25 I cant handle it not even for the short distance. Lead foot? Yes. I'll work on it.

Once you get a speeding ticket in a school zone, you will slow down. I believe in most states they start at $100 and go from there. An infraction also involves more points on your driver's license and potentially higher increases in insurance, too.

Just see the school zone as an opportunity to check out your "road crawling" gear... keep it in first and coast.

Yeah, work on it, please. WTF does that mean? Work on it? How about slow your ass down. The hair and nail appointment or what ever you think is so important can wait. If your want to likely run over some people, please do us all a favor and employ your driving skills through a PETA rally.

It's good you pull over for emergency vehciles. If I am responding and people don't pull over I radio the plate into our dispatcher who writes it down and runs it. When I am done with the call I put the tickets in the mail.

I hate people that actually stop when there's an emergency vehicle coming from the opposite direction with a very clear path already in front of them that wouldn't even require them to cross the centerline. Slow down a bit, hug the shoulder, fine, but for shit's sake, DON'T stop.
The point is to give them plenty of room to get by, and I always go out of my way to do that while still proceeding if it doesn't interfere with it.

Brent

hey brent, what if they have to turn into a drive way, other street or parking lot in front of you. If you are still moving, right into the way! STOP!

Far from it. Chicago has the highest percentage of self absorbed drivers/peds/bikers in the nation.

Stop Sign - Go through at moderate to slow speed
Red Light - an extra 3 or 4 cars are OK to go through.
Emergency Vehicle Courtesy - Only if you are not on your cell or petting your dog that is on your lap.

Pedestrians here think it is their God given right to possess perpetual motion, cyclists too.

hair and nail appointments? oh thats rich I dont wear makeup and I dont get my hair done what a waste of money. I simply like to go fast. I like eating meat too for that matter. I go below the required speed when there are actually kids about. Often however those lights flash long after the after school kids have gone home and schools been out for over an hour. But point taken.

If they're slowing to turn in front of me, I'll recognize it and stop short or proceed rapidly beyond as needed.

I dont know about your area but is the law to STOP for emergency vehicles on an undivided roadway. You never know where they are going or when they are going to have to turn so for fuck's sake STOP for a few seconds and let them go by.

You said you'd get attacked…

You admit that you speed in school zones. Then you backpedal and say you only do so during certain times of the day when you think you know that kids are not present? Those lights and signs are there and the speed limit is there to address the dangerous situation of mixing kids with moving vehicles. Kids do dumb things sometimes like run out in the street. The drivers don't need to be stupid and careless.

If you hit a kid and you severely injure or kill him or her, you guarantee at least two things happen:
1) You destroy or severely impact the innocent kid's life (and probably others' lives as well).
2) You deal yourself more resentment and trouble than you can stand.

The things you say... “Point taken”. You'll “work on it”. Once you go slow, you “can't handle it not even for the short distance.” Jeez. Get over yourself. The attitude you convey indicates how irresponsible and ignorant you are and supports the fact that some people really should not be licensed to drive.

Obey the law in this case and reduce the threat that you impose on the kids. The threat won't be dissipated altogether because they won't take your license away until after you hit a kid. But you can reduce it greatly by slowing down to the speed limit. Practice so that you can “handle it” for the short distance. Bitch.

If you were serious in your posts, you are dangerous and really should not be licensed.

RR, I don't know whether we like our kids more, or we're just smarter. I think Lttljess from Nebraska is just more stupid than anything else.

nah, most vermonters already drive nicely. The signs were put up for the flatlanders coming up from NY,CT and MA.

Let us know when you kill a child because you "can't handle it" for that 1/8 of a mile...