Back to school this year is more important than ever. Being able to go back to work as well! During rush hours, children go back to school independently or accompanied by their parents or supervisor. In the meantime, most workers are returning to work as well. After the holidays these road users need to get used to the traffic again, making the risk of an accident higher than usual. So we all have to be twice as careful!
Therefore our Waze volunteers have marked almost all Flemish primary school entrances on the Waze map(1). Thanks to wegstatus.be, a mobility partner specialised in processing open data, these locations are visualized during school rush hours for the 20.000 simultaneous active app users. Drivers using the app will receive a visual indication and an audible warning at a safe distance from the school gate.
This way, Waze users can take into account the hustle and bustle of the area and choose to take an alternative route, if possible. This also urges them to be extra vigilant for children that cross the road or are cycling to school.
Exceptional chaos at the school gate is usually caused by (rushed) parents. They should therefore choose a safe, legal car park within walking distance of the school gate(2).
We wish everyone a pleasant and above all safe first school and working week!
The Waze Belgium Volunteers.
(1) We are looking for a structured list with name and (geo)location of secondary, Brussels and Walloon schools for future editions. Feel free to contact us at back2school@wazebelgium.be. Would you like to add a place for this or next action? Let us know in this form. The current list of schools can be seen here.
(2) Waze can easily suggest parking and kiss&ride spots. Let us know if we can add a safe drop-off spot. This can be done in the form.