"Appalling" and "shameful" is how police and the Road Safety Commission have described the behaviour of drivers speeding through WA school zones last week.

Hundreds of drivers were pinged for speeding through the 40km/h school zones last week, as thousands of children went back to school for the first time in 2017.

Road Safety Commissioner Kim Papalia said it was "extraordinarily disappointing" to see so many drivers putting young lives at risk. Credit:Road Safety Commission

In some cases drivers caught speeding tested positive to drugs.

Traffic officers vented their frustration on Twitter over some of the drivers they came across speeding through the school zones.