Police campaign advises motorists to ‘slow your roll’ as Clark County kids head back to school

Today marks the start of a new school year for most children across Clark County — just the right time for drivers to get a crash-course on some road rules.

Some children will opt to walk or ride a bicycle to campus, so the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department launched a campaign warning motorists to “slow your roll” by obeying posted speed limits around school zones.

Drivers should also remember to stop for bright yellow school buses with flashing red lights and extended arms bearing a “stop” sign, regardless of which direction you’re headed. And of course, motorists need to obey the directions of those kind crossing guards just as much as the children do.

Some laws to keep in mind while driving through active school zones: no U-turns, no passing other moving vehicles, and come to a complete stop when children are crossing the street, Las Vegas police officials said.

“Expect the unexpected, because they are children, the are unpredictable and they are distracted by nature,” said Erin Breen, head of the Vulnerable Road Users Project at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

More than 30 pedestrians were fatally struck by vehicles so far this year, up from 24 at the same point in 2015, Breen said. It was unclear how many of those accidents occurred in school zones.

Parents can do their part to keep kids safe when walking to school or waiting at the bus stop. Children who walk should take a route that you’ve planned and checked for them with plenty of sidewalks and marked crosswalks, Breen said.

Smartphones and earbuds should be put away to avoid distractions. Put reflective tape on backpacks for kids who go to school at dawn, or walk home from after-school activities at dusk.

And of course, look both ways before crossing a street.

BUSTED PAVEMENT

The ramp leading from northbound Las Vegas Boulevard to the southbound U.S. Highway 95 is “very curvy, broken and bumpy,” Evonne from Las Vegas wrote in an email to the Road Warrior. The rough ride is apparently causing some costly alignment issues for her vehicle.

“The ramp identified has older pavement, subjected to heavy wear and tear, resulting in cracking and ruts,” said Tony Illia, a spokesman for the Nevada Department of Transportation

The good news is that repairs are on the way, but the work won’t be completed until November. Plans call for grinding away the layers of deteriorated asphalt, making room for a fresh coat of blacktop, Illia said.

“The end result will be a smooth, safe and durable driving surface,” he said.

Expect delays if the weather gets too chilly this fall, Illia warned. Cold weather can cause asphalt to dry too quickly, making it difficult to achieve the right density and reducing the pavement’s durability. If that happens, the ramp improvements won’t be completed until next spring.

GAP FILLED

James from Las Vegas wants to know when he can drive on Rainbow Boulevard between Cactus Avenue and Mountain’s Edge Parkway, without having to take a detour. For now, a small but crucial portion of Rainbow still needs to be built.

“All the residents in the area are pretty anxious to know,” James, a board member of his neighborhood association’s board of directors, wrote in an email to the Road Warrior.

Crews will head out in September to start laying new pavement on Rainbow, finally closing that annoying gap between Cactus and Mountains Edge, Clark County spokesman Dan Kulin said.

Expect lane shifts and closures along Rainbow during the roadwork, which is expected to wrap up by the end of January.

You can also expect to see two new traffic signals in your neighborhood sometime this fall, located at Buffalo Drive and Mountain’s Edge and also at Buffalo and Gomer Road, Kulin said.

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