Back to School Safety

As kids head back to school, the City would like to remind drivers of the importance of driving and parking safely in school zones.  To help make our streets safer for our children, we ask drivers to please be courteous and park responsibly when dropping off or picking up children from school and follow these tips:

  • Avoid double parking.
  • Watch for signs indicating ‘No Stopping’ and ‘No Parking’ zones.
  • School bus zones must be kept clear so children can step off the bus and onto a curb instead of exiting into a busy street.
  • Leave 5 meters between your car and any crosswalk markings. This will ensure children are visible when they enter the crosswalk.
  • Parking too close to stop signs, yield signs or intersections makes it difficult to see children in the area and obstructs the view of other motorists. A distance of 5 meters is required.
  • Be courteous to neighbours around schools. Do not block entrances to garages or driveways. Please stay back at least 1.5 meters.

To address community concerns about speeding vehicles, the City has installed radar equipped speed messaging signs in the IDES school zone on 13 St. School zones have a speed limit of 30 km/h from 8am-5pm on school days. Unless otherwise marked, speed limits on Fernie city streets are 40 km/h.