In front of schools and kindergartens the motto is: Take your foot off the gas. But many drivers still drive too fast. In Schöngeising, children and the police have now worked together to raise awareness among drivers to be more careful - with a sweet and sour campaign.
Schöngeising
- weekdays at 8 a.m., the world around the Amperzwerge children's home is quite lively - even on the traffic-calmed Von-Hundt-Straße in front of it. This is the time when most parents bring their children to the facility, many by car.
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“Parents often don’t really understand that you have to drive at walking speed,” said educator Katja Stifter. That's why the children's home and the police organized a very unique event. The officers lay in wait with the radar gun. Anyone who was traveling too quickly was stopped and offered a slice of lemon by the children. The sour taste combined with the carelessness should be remembered. Anyone who stuck to the speed limit was rewarded with gummy bears.
With Osman Akyüz it was clear that he had to bite the lemon. “I just explained to my son why he has to go to kindergarten,” he said in his defense. Then he no longer had such a close eye on the prescribed speed.
Akyüz therefore accepts the lemon and the admonition from Oliver Erhardt from the Fürstenfeldbruck police. “A good reminder that you have to be careful here.” Peter Varadi, who was also a bit too fast, reacted similarly.
The police did not reveal how much both fathers were over the speed limit. “There are different opinions about what constitutes traffic calming anyway,” says Erhardt.
Sweet and sour punishment for speedy drivers: suggestions from the parents' council
Therefore, the aim of the campaign is not to pillory drivers. “We wanted to show that this is about children,” emphasizes parent association member Liliana Pfister. It has more effect if children hand the lemons to the driver personally. “If you're confronted with children, it's more sustainable than a fine from the authorities,” says Pfister.
In the past, we have repeatedly observed drivers driving too fast. “Because nothing has changed, the idea for this campaign came about.” The community has also been approached about it. This was combined with the desire to ensure further safety with a few structural measures.
Sweet and sour punishment for speedy drivers: This is how the children were prepared
Girls and boys had already been prepared for the campaign at the beginning of the week. Traffic situations were discussed using a model. A police representative also visited and explained traffic rules to the children. “They’ll have to manage a route to school next year,” says Pfister. This would encourage the children to pay attention. “You now know that it is worthwhile for everyone to behave correctly and carefully in traffic.”
Corinna Neumann did that – at the prescribed speed and with great care when parking. The reward for this: she gets to reach into the box with the gummy bears. “The day starts well,” says the mother happily. But it was just as nice to see the joy with which the children took part in the campaign, she says.
At the end of the day there were more lemons left than gummy bears. A good signal for educator Stifter. She has a tip on how to keep it that way. “Leave home a little earlier in the morning so you don’t have to push the pace so much.”
You can find even more current news from the Fürstenfeldbruck district at Merkur.de/Fürstenfeldbruck.