EDITORIAL: Lawmakers address the rise in school-zone accidents

State lawmakers took some modest steps during the recent special session to improve pedestrian safety near schools. But the effort largely ignores half the equation.

Assembly Bill 6 unanimously passed the Assembly and Senate last month after Gov. Joe Lombardo called lawmakers back to Carson City to consider “unfinished business.” The governor signed the bill on Nov. 29. The legislation increases punishments for traffic violations in active school zones and seeks uniform standards for signs and devices in such areas. It also urges the Department of Transportation to consult local governments and school officials when it comes to setting the parameters of school zones.

The latter is a particularly positive reform. Individual principals rather than state bureaucrats have intimate knowledge about the needs of each particular campus when it comes to pedestrian safety.

The legislation comes amid a startling spike this fall in the number of vehicle-pedestrian incidents near Clark County schools. An October report revealed that 142 children had been hit by vehicles in Las Vegas-area school zones in the previous two months, triple the number of such incidents over the same period in the past two years. Most of the incidents did not result in serious injury, but two local students were tragically killed in separate accidents during October. One of the deaths involved a suspected drunken driver.

The tendency might be to blame drivers — and the tougher penalties in AB6 are indeed appropriate for motorists, particularly those who are impaired, who ignore the safety of students in school zones. But a Clark County School District analysis concluded that “about half of the crash investigations indicate that the collision was caused by pedestrian error.” In addition KLAS-TV, Channel 8, has reported that about 35 percent of accidents involve e-bikes and scooters.

Yet AB6 doesn’t address the problem of inattentive pedestrians immersed in their earbuds or devices and oblivious to their surroundings, a common sight these days.

Clark County commissioners this year approved a plan to increase the number of crossing guards at middle schools, which some credited with reducing the number of incidents near the affected campuses. A further expansion may be warranted. But school officials and parents can do their part through awareness campaigns designed to teach students the value of paying close attention to their surroundings when navigating local roadways on foot. Educational efforts regarding the operation of e-bikes and scooters in motor-vehicle traffic would also be appropriate.

AB6 is a step forward. But reform can’t ignore the fact that pedestrians also have an obligation to take the necessary steps to minimize the potential for tragedy.