It is difficult to think of a more important target for the improvement of road safety than children’s way to school. Nodeon implemented its Safer Way to School solution for the Lounetjärvi school and daycare centre in Tikkakoski.
There are numerous sudden road crossings and takeover traffic, temporarily parked cars of parents dropping off or picking up their kids from school, and situational speeds that are often too high during dark autumn and winter mornings. It is a rare place where the significance of road safety gets as much emphasis as in the vicinity of schools.
The effect of traditional speed limit and warning signs is weak. According to studies, the people who live near schools and pass the school area several times a day have the poorest track record in observing such signs. The problem is particularly pronounced during mornings and afternoons, when school days begin or end.
PRODUCTISED SAFETY FOR SCHOOL ROADS
Nodeon has developed a smart traffic solution for the improvement of schools’ road safety, designed particularly for the needs of cities. The Safer Way to School solution relies on LED-based, changing speed limit and warning signs as well as the Nodeon Smart City management solution used in their control.
The speed limit is reduced, and the sign warning drivers of children is on only during school days. At other times, people can drive in the area according to the normal area speed limit. Another clear advantage is the LED-based signs’ higher visibility and attention value in comparison to a fixed traffic sign.
A SAFER WAY TO THE LUONETJÄRVI SCHOOL
Nodeon’s Safer Way to School project was implemented at the Lounetjärvi school and the adjacent daycare centre in Tikkakoski.
Nodeon delivered changing signs which meet the requirements of the European standard EN 12966 to the school. The signs reduce the speed limit of the area to 30 kilometres an hour for the duration of school days. A sign warning drivers of children and the school area lights up at the same time. During other times, the traffic is not inconvenienced with the reduced speed limit, which is changed back to 40 kilometres an hour.
The signs are easy to control. The system is managed with a productised cloud-based solution, due to which the town does not need to invest in the design, procurement and implementation of a separate management system. The system allows for the creation of a single weekly calendar according to which the signs are controlled automatically. The system also allows for special days, meaning that the controls can be deactivated on national holidays, for example, with a couple clicks. Special controls can also be set for an evening during which children are at the school for some other reason.
In the future, the town can also easily use the same system to control several school areas within its limits.