Drivers Have Rough Start To School Year With Second School Bus Crash

School Zone Speed Limit Sign

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With school back in session in a majority of Florida counties, police say many drivers don't appear to be aware of it.

In Port St. Lucie, 53 warnings and citations were given out in school zones on Wednesday.

Traffic Officer Keith Applebaum says they're not after the money that the tickets bring in.

"Our primary focus is education, followed by enforcement. Overall the goal is to ensure the safety of our children and the motoring public."

Crossing guard Cherie Portinga says she's not surprised.

"The first couple of weeks is always chaotic with the cars, the traffic and some of the locals forget that school started."

Port St. Lucie police issued 10,000 citations in or around school zones last year, with tickets running as high as $456.

Boynton Beach Police issued nine citations and 28 warnings between two elementary schools there on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, five elementary school students were on a bus in Wellington Thursday when a car traveling at a "high rate of speed" crashed into the back of the bus. Nobody required a trip to the hospital, except for two people in the car who suffered traumatic injuries.

This follows a car rear-ending another school bus in Lake Worth on the first day of school Wednesday, with only the occupants of the car being injured.

Members of law enforcement urge drivers to watch for kids and buses and watch your speed in school zones.


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