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- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Valley&State Backpage O&E Sports Archives Classifieds Faith&Beliefs Obituaries Revels June 21, 2004 School zones turn 24 hours By Bill Choy Ashland Daily Tidings Driving at 20 mph on many roads next to schools will become a 24-hour-a-day affair beginning July 1. The Oregon Department of Transportation recently announced school zones adjacent to schools on roads with a posted speed limit of 30 mph or less will be 20 mph zones at all times. Previously, the rule applied only to when children were present. The changes are a result of Senate Bill 179 passed by the Oregon Legislature last year in an attempt to clear up confusion about what constitutes a school zone - and when speed limits are reduced. Ashland Elementary School principals said they like the change. "I think it's great," Lincoln Elementary Principal Susan Hollandsworth said. "It will help slow cars down and make them aware there could be children around at all times. In my mind, children have the potential to be around schools at all hours for school functions in the evening or using the playground." Helman Elementary Principal Barbara Fields agreed. "People need to slow down near schools because you just never know when kids are here," she said. "During the day, even on weekends, there are children playing at the park and crossing the street. You never know for certain when kids are here, so this is a great way to encourage people to slow down in residential areas near schools." Jay Remy, a spokesperson for ODOT said many drivers have for many years expressed confusion over signs that say the speed limit is 20 mph when children are present. "This is a way to put certainty to it," he said. "They now know it's at all times, so hopefully, this will help people slow down in a school zone because kids don't always make the right decisions when crossing the street. " ODOT hopes the new 20 mph signs will be put up before the start of school at the end of August across the state. "The new rules may be difficult for motorists to memorize," said ODOT traffic services engineer Doug Bish. "So they need to watch carefully for the new signs. The best way to avoid a ticket is to obey whatever the signs say." Ashland Police Officer Steve MacLennan said he appreciates the new law being more clear to drivers that the 20 mph speed limit next to schools is at all times. "They made it easier for us," he said. For school zones on roads where the posted speed limit is 35 mph or higher, the times of the 20 mph speed limit will be defined in one of two ways. Either signs will post specific hours, or flashing lights will signal when it is in effect. Frank d'Entremont, community service volunteer coordinator for the APD, said people speeding in school zones is a problem. "Especially during school times, it's important to have the speed limit near schools at 20 mph," he said. "I don't know what (ODOT) engineers had in mind, but they must have had a good reason to make the changes and probably found there was a problem in school zones at all hours. ... I can tell you that when we're out, there are cars speeding by at high speeds. At times, I'm afraid they are going to hit the crossing guards." DailyTidings.com Home Page Valley&State | Backpage | O&E | Sports | Archives | Weather | Classifieds Columnists | Faith&Beliefs | Obituaries | Revels | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2004 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Click Here Site Search: .:Advertisements:. RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams