$afety $aves – by Justin Doble

Now that summer has officially ended and fall is in full swing it’s that time of year – no not hunting season- rather, school is in session.  With school now in full swing there will be kids running across streets and yellow school buses on highways.  With this in mind it’s a great time to review a few back-to-school driving safety tips

Crosswalk and School Zones Safety

            With students hurrying to get to and from school please double check to ensure you don’t miss that little kid that darts out of nowhere to get across the street.  Make sure you make a complete stop at lights and stop signs.  Make sure to scan the road when entering a marked school zone and slow down to the posted speed limit sign.  Regardless of time of day, or day of week, or even whether school is in session… the speed limit applies.  It could be a Saturday night after a basketball game -   if you are in a school zone you are required to obey the posted speed limit for that school zone unless otherwise stated on the sign.

            Log truck drivers can lead by example and slow down for pedestrians.  When you slow down the car next to you will be more apt to slow down to see what hazard may lie ahead.  This not only makes you a safer driver but also helps other drivers that may not see children or obstacles that are visible to you.

School Bus Safety

Those large yellow vehicles are packed with children, and might even have your child or grandchild on board.  More bus passengers are killed each year while unloading/loading than while traveling inside a school bus. When a school bus stops and it has its red lights flashing and stop sign raised, you must stop from either direction until all kids are safety across the street and the bus lights stop flashing (unless school bus is stopped on the other side of a divided highway).  If a bus has its yellow lights flashing it is either preparing to stop and unload students or students have just boarded and the bus is preparing to start moving.

            Also, please don’t follow a bus too closely as they make frequent and sudden stops and please allow buses to merge back into traffic as you must give them the right of way.  Just remember that school buses transport 25 million students daily and keep 17 million vehicles away from entering school zones every day.

          If you’re dropping your children off at school remember, don’t double park as it blocks visibility for other children and vehicles; don’t load or unload children across the street from the school; and, if you can, carpool to reduce the number of vehicles in the school zone.

            A few other things to think about: Near high school campuses, keep in mind that many drivers are newly licensed teenagers and don’t have the driving experience you do. In addition, teenagers are likely to have a smart phone attached to their ear at all times which is a major distraction for any driver.  Also, bear in mind that school buses are not the only ones dropping off or picking up kids at school; be prepared for a vehicle to make a sudden stop in the middle of the street or merge back into traffic or and make a sudden U turn.

            In conclusion…  one of the highest risks of an accidents is traveling to and from the job site, and that’s why the most important part of your day is ensuring that you and your crew arrive home safely each afternoon.

            Thank you, Professional Log Haulers for the amount of time you put in to delivering logs to our mills and the time spent keeping your rigs in good working order.  You are the face of the industry to the public, and by setting good example out there on the roadway, it leaves the public with a better view of what we do.  And that is good for all of us …  until next time remember… $afety Saves!!