HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHP) — As the new school year is knocking on the door in central Pennsylvania, the courts want to remind drivers to slow down after more than 25,000 citations were issued in school zones since 2021.
According to information shared by the courts, there have been 25,136 school zone violation citations issued over the last five years.
Nearly 1% of the 16,834 citations were issued in Dauphin County, while 1.85% of the other 8,302 passing school bus violations were reported in the county over those five years.
As the new school year is knocking on the door in central Pennsylvania, the courts want to remind drivers to slow down after more than 25,000 citations were issued in school zones since 2021. (PA Courts)
Around 32% of all citations issued for speeding in a school zone were reported in Montgomery County, with 9% being reported in both Bucks and Delaware counties, court data shows.
Allegheny County paces Pennsylvania in terms of the rate of passing a school bus violations, with 19%, while Montgomery County comes in second with 13%.
Data shared by the courts show around 23% of drivers between the ages of 20 to 29 and 30 to 39 were each cited for both violations. Of the drivers cited for passing a school bus in a school zone, 53% were male.
Across a calendar year, school zone and bus citations often spike in September (16%) and steadily drop, reaching their lowest levels in December (6%).
As the new school year is knocking on the door in central Pennsylvania, the courts want to remind drivers to slow down after more than 25,000 citations were issued in school zones since 2021. (PA Courts)
In Steelton, the police are taking a more proactive approach ahead of the scheduled Aug. 17 back-to-school date.
RELATED | Steelton police plan to create traffic corridors to help facilitate student school travel
The police announced plans to create traffic corridors to help facilitate safe school travel for students by cracking down on issues like speeding, crosswalk recognition, and distracted driving.
“The Steelton Borough Police Department is committed to ensuring that every student has a safe journey to and from school each day,” the department wrote.
Parents are urged to reach out to their kids about pedestrian safety by emphasizing crosswalk use, looking both ways before crossing the road, and staying alert while walking to and from school.