Traffic and parking rules around schools are created and enforced for the safety of the students. Each year, the Appleton Police Department receives complaints related to unsafe driving in school zones. Some of the issues include:

• Illegal parking or stopping

• Failure to obey the Crossing Guard

• Failure to yield to children in the crosswalk

• Speeding in the school zone

We encourage all of our families to follow posted signs in school zones and on school property. We work cooperatively with area law enforcement to prioritize safety and to ensure efficiency in the busy times around drop-off and dismissal.

Families that are dropping off students should follow their school’s recommendations on parking and traffic flow. If you aren’t sure where you should park, drop off, or pick up your students, please call your school’s office.

As a reminder, parents or guardians who have unloaded their passengers in the loading zone should leave, by law. They are now considered to be parked in a no-parking area if they have unloaded their passengers.

Parents or guardians picking up their children after school are actively waiting to load, and are not in violation. Once they have actively loaded their passengers, they also need to drive on to allow other vehicles space to safely pick up students.

We have been notified by law enforcement that, due to ongoing complaints, tickets will be issued to vehicles that are parked in the school loading zone after they have unloaded their passengers or have left their vehicles in that area (parked).

Tips and reminders for Families

• To avoid traffic congestion, park further away from school and let your child cross the street at a Crossing Guard, Safety Patrol, or marked or unmarked crosswalk. Never let your child cross between parked cars or mid-block!

• At the time you are picking up or dropping off your child, many other people are doing the same thing and creating a lot of congestion. Because of this, if the child has to cross the street without the aid of a Crossing Guard or Safety Patrol, you as a parent should help your child cross the street.

Additional issues to be aware of

• Stopping in an intersection is not legal (this includes the top of "T" intersections). This area is off-limits to stopped vehicles. Please do not drop off your child in the street. This violation can result in a traffic citation.

• Double-parking (or stopping) of vehicles is not legal. You may not stop your vehicle on the roadway side of any parked vehicle. This violation can also result in a traffic citation.