School zone speeders to face hefty fines

With school reopening in Spokane Valley and area districts, drivers should be aware that children will be out on the streets and should watch their speed limits.

Sgt. Mike Zollars of the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office traffic unit said his team won’t be organizing a formal emphasis patrol in school zones, but deputies will be out in force.

“We always hammer the school zones when school opens,” he said.

School zones may extend 300 feet from a school. If drivers are pulled over for speeding they could face some hefty fines.

Drivers clocked one to five miles over the limit, could be cited $189. Six to 10 miles over jumps to $210. At 11 to 15 miles over the speed limit in a school zone, the fine is $271 and 16 to 20 over jumps to $353.

Zollars said the fine reaches $784 for a driver going 36 mph over the speed limit or higher. But, he added that 36 mph over the speed limit in a school zone would mean that the driver was going 56 miles per hour.

“For 56 in a 20, we’re more likely to arrest you for reckless driving,” Zollars said.

The fines are determined by state law, not by the local jurisdiction.

“We don’t set the fines, we just write the violations,” he said.

Zollars said a school zone sign that says “When children are present” means that if there is an area children have access to the street from school grounds, the speed limit is 20 mph. If there is a fence around the play area that children are behind, the rules aren’t as strict, but Zollars recommends staying alert for children.

“Kids are silly and unpredictable,” Zollars said. “It’s always best to treat them as if they are going to dart out right in front of you.”

Coming up this week, the first day of school is Tuesday for Freeman students, Wednesday in Central Valley and West Valley districts. Liberty opened Aug. 30 and East Valley started on Sept. 1.

He added that statistically, for every 27 citations officers write there is one less collision. He said that writing tickets is not the officers’ goal, but keeping everyone safe is.

“What we strive for is motorist compliance.”