TULSA, Okla — Getting a ticket for speeding in an active school zone means a mandatory court date. If the judge finds you guilty, there are fines and the potential for jail time, depending on how fast you were going.
Tulsa police issued nearly 1,600 tickets to school zone speeders since the start of 2022.
So, when you see those flashing yellow lights or a sign saying a school zone is in effect during specific hours, drivers must slow down.
After all, it's to keep kids safe.
Terry Doverspike lives near 71st Street and South 73rd.
That intersection is in the middle of a school zone that is activated twice a day. Drivers on 71st have an easy time seeing the big school zone signs with flashing yellow lights.
But, he worries those turning left onto 71st can't easily see when the school zones are active.
"When you pull up to the intersection," Doverspike said, "and you're going east on 71st you're supposed to look to the west across all six lanes of traffic and look for a tiny white light on the backside of the flashing sign that tells you it's active."
That's right. There is a little white light on the backside of the sign that blinks. Many don't know they're supposed to look for that light, and even those that do can have a difficult time seeing it. Depending on how they pull up to the intersection it can be obscured by traffic, tree limbs or a big utility pole.
When Doverspike went to the City with his concern last year the streets department put up a sign that indicates a school zone on 71st. But, it doesn't indicate what time of day the zone is active.
"I then reached out to Lori Decter Wright, our City Councilor. She was very gracious," he said. "She offered to speak to the Street Department and then put me back in contact with them directly again. That time, they came back, their answer was, if you live in the neighborhood, you should know when the school's active without needing a flashing light. So she wasn't able to get any results either."
So Doverspike called the Problem Solvers.
We discovered at least two other school zones with similar problems.
Drivers turning left out of the Sam's Club on Mingo to go north in front of Union High School can't see the yellow flashing lights indicating when that school zone is active. But at least the white light on the back is more easily seen.
Also, drivers turning onto 31st Street from a side street next to Ellen Ochoa Elementary can't see flashing lights indicating when that school zone is active.
"If they come out of the school itself, they have no way of seeing that the lights are flashing," said Craig Heatherly, a Tulsa Police Traffic Investigator.
When 2 News asked for an interview with the Tulsa Streets Department.
While we don’t have anyone for an interview…
School zone signs are placed in locations as prescribed by the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD).
2 News asked the U.S. Department of Transportation for that information and will add it to this story when we receive it.
Let us know if you know of other school zones where drivers may have difficulty seeing the signs.
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