New California bill seeks to lower speed limits in school zones

A bill introduced in the California Legislature seeks to lower speed limits within school zones statewide from 25 mph to “20 mph or less,” regardless of whether children are present.

Specifically, the bill would have time-based standards for school zones’ speed limits rather than drivers only having to follow them “when children are present”.

The bill would also improve safety-oriented planning within half a mile of schools.

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Assemblymember Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park) formally introduced the bill, formally known as AB 2583 or the Safer School Zones Act during a press conference on Thursday.

Berman said he was inspired to introduce the legislation after 8-year-old Jacob Villanueva was hit and killed in a crosswalk on his way to Castlemont Elementary School, in Campbell, California. This is also where the press conference took place.

“I want to take a moment to acknowledge that this is a deeply personal and painful subject for the Castlemont Community,” Berman said at a news conference. “I know that the pain and trauma of losing a student in 2022 is still very real for the community.”

Villanueva was on his way to school with his babysitter on Sept. 16, 2022, when a woman driving a 2022 Mercedes-Benz crossover turned left and hit them in the crosswalk of a single-lane road that neighbors warned was an accident waiting to happen, Mercury News reported.

Villanueva later died at the hospital and the babysitter suffered a broken leg.

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“Research shows that reducing speed limits in school zones brings significant safety benefits,” Berman stated. “But lowering speeds alone isn’t enough. Our current school zone policies are confusing for drivers to follow and hard for public safety officials to enforce. School zones should be safe havens for all students, parents, teachers, and school employees.”

Should AB 2583 pass, the lower speed limits would be enforced from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Local authorities may enforce alternative hours as long as “the hours are no less than one hour before or after the school is in operation and the alternative hours are posted on the “SCHOOL” warning sign,” according to the bill’s text.

The bill would go into effect beginning on Jan. 1, 2025, should it pass the state Legislature and Assembly and be signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

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