Police, Officials Out In Force For Start Of Vernon School Year

VERNON, CT — Vernon school officials and police officers will be out in force for Wednesday's start of the 2019-20 school year and the remainder of the week.

Police will be monitoring bus routes and crosswalks, police spokesman Lt. William Meier said.

The fine for passing a standing school bus is $465 and the minimum fine for speeding in a school
zone is $182. Meier said vehicles must stop for a school bus picking up and dropping off students even on the opposite side of a four-lane road like Route 83, unless a distinct barrier separates the two sides.

Cory Lafountaine, the Vernon school system's logistics and safety supervisor, said three key areas will get a little extra attention during the first week of school.

One is at Center Road School, where Superintendent of Schools Joseph Macary and Mayor Daniel Champagne worked closely to change traffic patterns with an emphasis on safety.

Buses and staff members will use a new driveway cut behind the building, he said. Staff members will use a new parking lot behind the playground and buses will drop students off in the lot near the gym and cafeteria doors. Parents will enter the campus at the main driveway, head right, coast around the parking lot, and drop children off at the main circle. Three new stop signs and a traffic island have been installed as guides.

The additional spaces free up the main parking lot and should deter the double- and triple-parking that plagued dismissal and arrival times in the past, officials said.

Police will also be assisting school officials with the traffic patterns at Skinner Road School. Officials said paving projects in the neighborhood should not adversely affect traffic.

Union Street near Maple Street School will also be a point of emphasis for police this week.