VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – If you think you can get away with gunning it in a school zone now that kids are done for the summer — think again. Officers are reminding you the lower speed limits may still in effect.

There may be no school zone limit anymore because classes aren’t in session, but a lot of these zones are still playground zones which means it is 30 km/h from dawn to dusk — a law that’s in effect year round.

Vancouver Police Constable Brian Montague says just because kids aren’t in class doesn’t mean they aren’t in the area. “I think we’ve been very lucky that we haven’t seen recently any small children get killed or really seriously injured in Vancouver as a result of people speeding in school zones and playground zones. Unfortunately, I think drivers are playing a very dangerous game at times by speeding through these areas.”

He adds it takes all of two seconds for a child to jump out between two parked cars, for example, and get hit by a car. “And I know people don’t get behind the wheel of their car and think they’re going to hurt or kill someone but the way some people drive it’s inevitable it’s going to happen.”

So, how do you prevent that? “When I get behind the wheel of my own car or even a police car, I’m very cautious of everybody on the road. I assume that nobody is paying attention and I assume that everyone out there is a bad driver. It makes me pay more attention and watch for those individuals who are driving in a hazardous and dangerous manner,” adds Montague.

A ticket for speeding in a playground zone, according to ICBC, starts at about $200 and three penalty points.