1.
School zones in the Phoenix area tend to be marked with a 15 mile per hour speed limit during
morning and afternoon school hours. Drivers are required to slow their speeds, if necessary, before
entering a marked school zone and must keep their speeds at or below the posted speed limit until
after they exit the school zone. School zone speed limits tend to only be active during school days and
therefore do not apply during marked hours on the weekends or over school breaks.

2.
Drivers in a school zone cannot pass other
motorists who are proceeding through the
zone and should be extremely cautious
when approaching stopped vehicles.
Often, children exit stopped cars or dart
among cars without looking for oncoming
traffic first, leading to a potential situation
where a driver is involved in a pedestrian
accident.
School buses are present in school zones
on most days and should be given a wide
berth when necessary. If a school bus pulls
to a stop and activates its lights and stop
signs, all approaching drivers must stop
and wait until the school bus has
completed its pickup or drop off of
students. Further, drivers on both sides of
a roadway should be alert as kids may be
crossing from one side of the road to the
other even if a crosswalk is not
immediately present.

3.
• The 15 mph school zones cannot be used at crosswalks that are controlled by STOP signs or traffic signals.
• The state law provides for the use of portable signs and yellow crosswalk markings, and the 15 mph provision is
only in effect when the portable signs are placed in the street.
•
The school zone signs are placed and removed by crossing guards or school employees under a special operating
agreement between the school district and the traffic agency that controls the roadway, and can only be used for
legitimate school crossing activities during a normal school day.
•
Each 15 mph school zone is preceded by a permanent fluorescent yellow-green pentagon-shaped advance school
warning sign showing two walking school children.
•
The first portable sign placed in the street states, “NO PASSING, 15 MPH, FINES DOUBLED, SCHOOL IN SESSION,”
which is located about 75 to 300 feet in advance of the yellow crosswalk depending on the non-school posted
speed limit. This portable sign is placed at the location where the 15 mph speed limit begins. Furthermore,
motorists cannot pass any other slower or stopped vehicles between the first portable 15 mph sign to the yellow
crosswalk. At the yellow crosswalk, a different portable sign exists which states, “STOP WHEN CHILDREN IN
CROSSWALK.”
-https://www.azdot.gov/media/blog/posts/2011/08/16/better-safe-than-sorry-arizona-school-zones-aim-to-provide-
safe-crossings

4.
Contact a Phoenix Pedestrian Accident Attorney Today to Discuss Your
Options
If you or your child were hit by a motorist, please contact us as soon as
possible.
A pedestrian accident can have a devastating impact on you or your
child’s life.
For this reason, it is critically important to protect yourself by retaining an
experienced attorney.
For a free consultation with one of our lawyers, call Abels & Annes,
P.C. today at 602-819-5191 or send us an email through our online
contact form.