Community Watch - Dec. 1

Community Watch is a weekly feature of The Olympian designed to help readers get action on local problems.

What needs attention

A reader wonders when drivers must slow down to 20 mph in a school zone and when they return to the posted speed limit.

He uses the example of the stretch of Mullen Road in front of Timberline High School and Lakes Elementary School that recently was improved.

Where it stands

State law states that "It shall be unlawful for a driver of any vehicle to operate the vehicle in excess of 20 miles per hour when passing any marked school crosswalk when such crosswalk is fully posted with standard school speed limit signs."

The law further states: "The speed zone at the (school) crosswalk shall extend three hundred feet in either direction from the marked crosswalk."

A posted school zone sign, often with a flashing yellow light, is the marker for entering the reduced speed zone. The end of the school zone typically is marked with a posted speed limit sign, said Al Stanford, Lacey traffic officer.

Whom to call

Lacey Police Department, 360-459-4333.

Tell us what needs attention: Send your complaint to Jerre Redecker, Community Watch, The Olympian, P.O. Box 1219, Olympia, WA 98507, fax to 360-357-0202, or send e-mail to ­jredecker@theolympian.com.