School zones
During the school year, thousands of students use the streets around Vaudreuil-Dorion's eight elementary schools and two high schools every day.
A team of 11 crossing guards works morning, noon and night at the following eight school crossings:
- Saint-Charles / Sainte-Madeleine
- Cité-des-Jeunes / Jeannotte
- Cité-des-Jeunes / Ouimet
- Saint-Charles / Jeannotte
- Émile-Bouchard / Toe-Blake
- Chicoine / De Lotbinière
- Saint-Charles / Brodeur
- Harwood / de la Fabrique
Their role is to ensure the safety of young people on foot or by bike, and to enable them to travel independently and safely.
The Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec's Guide d'organisation d'une brigade scolaire adulte sets out the criteria used to determine the locations requiring school crossing guards, including the type of road, the presence of heavy vehicles, vehicle speed, etc.
Our crossing guards
In order of appearance:
Valérie Brochu, Martine Champagne, Manon Comtois, Maurice d'Amour, Louise Ducharme, Louise Labre, André Larivée, Huguette Lépine, Mylène Sauvé and Michèle Smith.
Motorists: courtesy and patience
Motorists must be extra cautious around schools and obey the signs. To ensure children's safety, it is essential to :
- Stop at pedestrian crossings;
- Respect the 30 km/h speed limit;
- Respect crossing guards and their instructions, and be patient while they help children cross;
- Stop your vehicle within five metres of a school bus when its intermittent lights come on and its mandatory stop sign opens.
Children: how to behave safely
To ensure harmonious cohabitation, pedestrians must also adopt safe behaviors. Children should :
- look at both sides of the street before crossing, at designated places;
- make eye contact with motorists before crossing at intersections;
- be cautious at all times.
Turning right at a red light: be careful!
Turning right at a red light is a privilege that comes with several obligations. While it allows motorists to save time, they must first bring their vehicle to a complete stop, ensure that the right turn is safe and give way to vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists already entering or about to enter the intersection. Pedestrians have priority at traffic lights when the white silhouette appears. If there is no pedestrian light, they have priority when the traffic light is green.
Difference between white and yellow crosswalks
At intersections, crosswalks are marked in white whenever there is a traffic light or stop sign. Between intersections, or in the absence of traffic lights or a stop sign, crosswalks are marked with yellow ground markings. It's as simple as that!
School buses
Motorists need to be even more careful around school buses. When the bus stops to pick up or drop off passengers, flashing red lights are activated and a mandatory stop sign is displayed. You must stop more than 5 meters from the bus. The Quebec government outlines the rules for different situations.