Recently, I visited a friend who lives in a suburb very close to mine who has a neighbor that recently started putting out these “Children at Play” signs in front of their house.
Only, said neighbor doesn’t place them on the grass or curb as depicted in the picture. They put one on each side of their property, smack dab in the middle of the street where cars have to literally drive around them, to allow their children to play IN the street, creating what they think is a “play zone” for their kids. I don’t think I have to tell you what a bad idea this is…..or do I?
This neighbor apparently believes this sign will take care of any problems pertaining to their children playing in the street in front of their house, including reducing speeds and preventing accidents. On several occasions, going by this location, there were no parents in sight. “Children at Play” signs give parents and kids a false sense of security, as the sign is assumed to provide protection, when in fact, motorists pay little attention to them.
Manufacturer’s of these signs use parental fear as a selling point saying “Notifying drivers that there are children at play may reduce your child’s risk” These type of “advisory signs” have been proven neither to change driver behavior, nor do anything to improve the safety of children in a traffic setting. What’s more, these types of signs are not sanctioned by the State or Federal Traffic Administrations and in addition, placing them or any other signage blocking a city street is against City Ordinance Codes.
Look, children should not be allowed or encouraged to play in or near the street. Federal standards reject these signs because they openly suggest that playing in the street is acceptable. More importantly, parents should be teaching their children the dangers of playing in or near roadways and strongly discouraging them from doing so, not trying to block off streets areas for them to play in. I realize that some parents are going to err on the side of “It can’t hurt” to place the signs out there, but as I stand and watch 4 and 5 year olds riding trikes in circles between the two “safety” signs without paying any attention to the cars approaching, I think “This can’t end well” while silently hoping it does.
The above mentioned neighbor is located in a city of Colorado…for the exact city code they are violating, you can view the City of Thornton, Colorado Code of Ordinances here: http://tinyurl.com/77q4hgh
(Article XII - Traffic & Vehicles, DIV 2 – Model Traffic Code, Sec. 38-523, G (113.5) #5)
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What do you think? Have you used these signs before? Tell us your opinion.
2 comments:
What do you do if you live in a neighborhood with no sidewalks?
If your neighborhood has no sidewalks, we suggest that small children ride trikes and small bikes with training wheels in the driveway or on patios. Where we live, we have some very nice bike paths designated for riding bikes away from traffic also. While a cul de sac is slightly safer considering there's no thru traffic, it's still not the best idea where automobile traffic is present. There are bike safety classes for older children so they can learn to safely navigate neighborhood streets and should be taught to respect and understand traffic.
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