Danger on the way to school

Safe routes too often fail to live up to their name

11 accidents on the way to school occurred on safety routes in Lower Austria last year.(Bild: Dostal Harald)

As of today, more children are on the roads - and in danger. Too many accidents involving schoolchildren happen at crosswalks. 

The start of school in Lower Austria means that from today, thousands of children will be making their way to school every day. And they usually have to cross numerous roads. For drivers, this means: watch out, pay more attention! And always be ready to brake where there are traditional school routes. "Because the so-called principle of trust does not apply to children," reminds Katharina Jascchinsky from Verkehrsklub Österreich.

Nowadays, many cars are higher than they used to be. If they are parked close to a safety lane, children cannot be seen when entering the road. For this reason, the stopping and parking ban in front of safety paths should be extended from five to ten meters.

Katharina Jaschinsky, Verkehrsclub Österreich

Sad statistics 
In addition, even safety paths do not always guarantee a safe crossing of the road. A sad statistic shows this: last year there were a total of 65 accidents on the way to school in Lower Austria - 11 of which occurred on crosswalks. This means that every sixth accident on the way to or from school happened on a marked crosswalk.

The police are now stepping up speed checks around schools.(Bild: Andi Schiel)

Slow down!
From today, the police will also be stepping up their school route patrols with around 500 officers throughout eastern Austria. The focus is on traffic control at crossings and intersections as well as speed checks in the vicinity of schools and kindergartens.