AUCKLAND CITY COUNCIL

MEDIA RELEASE

21 February 2007

Parking officers lessen the chaos at the school gate

Auckland City Council parking officers were on hand yesterday afternoon to thank parents for parking safely outside Epsom Normal school.

The school is part of the council’s Chaos at the School Gate programme, designed to improve safety outside schools.

“It can be bedlam at some schools when parents come to collect their children,” says Councillor Richard Simpson, chairperson of the council’s Transport and Urban Linkages Committee.

“Safety is our priority. Parking officers patrol outside schools during peak times, adopting a zero tolerance approach towards people who ignore the road rules.

“Double parking and parking on broken yellow lines, even for a couple of minutes, can create a safety risk for children.

“The Chaos at the School Gate programme has been successful in reducing the danger to children, as well as improving traffic flow around schools during the afternoon rush.”

This term, parking officers will be at 15 schools across the city, carrying out enforcement at the end of the school day.

A further 28 schools are participating in the faxback scheme, where school staff fax through details of illegally parked vehicles and the parking services team send out a warning letter to the vehicle owner.

The council can also help set up walking school buses to encourage parents and children to get out of the car and walk to school instead.

Schools interested in joining any of these schemes can find out more by visiting www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/transport and selecting road safety.

Ends

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