Back To School Means Back To Sharing Roads With School Traffic

Back-to-school time means it’s back to sharing the roads with school traffic.

Cookeville Police Captain Jeff Johnson said the most common issues they see come from drivers not familiar with driving in school zones.

“With Tech students arriving back and new drivers from the high schools maybe not being aware of different elementary school locations and school zones and people trying to get to work,” Johnson said. “People need to adjust back to that school being in session.”

Johnson said each school can have its own safety issues. For example, he said Jere Whitson has a narrow road fine for traffic, but adding pedestrian traffic can create hazards. In a similar way, Avery Trace Middle School just off of Highway 70 creates dangers with speeding.

Johnson said the most important thing is for drivers to stay alert, especially during the first few weeks back to school. He said that officers pay particular attention to speeding and distracted driving around school zones during this period.