Aug 12, 2022

School zones will be enforced starting next week

Posted Aug 12, 2022 3:10 PM

NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Captain Brice Burlie with the Hutchinson Police Department reminds motorists that school zones will be enforced once students come back next week.

"They're consistent across the town," Burlie said. "They are 7 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., then in the afternoon, they are 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. The speed limit will go down to a 20 mile per hour zone through all of the school districts. It doesn't matter what the speed limit is before or after. They are all 20 miles per hour."

Traffic fines double in school zones, and improper passing of a school bus is illegal.

"When they have come to a complete stop and put that stop sign out, you have to stop, as well," Burlie said. "You can't pass from either direction. Sometimes, people think that if they are going the opposite direction, that they don't need to stop, but that means the whole entire street where that bus is parked at, with the stop sign out, needs to come to a complete stop, until the stop sign is closed on that school bus."

It's important to pay attention around Hutch High and HutchCC too, even though there technically aren't school zone signs at 11th and Severance.

"That's a big high volume area," Burlie said. "There's Hutchinson High School, Hutchinson Community College and then don't forget about Graber grade school up there on 17th. That's the only area in that vicinity that actually has a school zone attached, where the grade school is at."

If you have any traffic questions, feel free to call the non-emergency number at (620) 694-2816 and they will talk to you.