CAREFUL OUT THERE STUDENTS LEARN HOW TO BE SAFE ON STREETS.

Byline: Krystn Shrieve Staff Writer

THOUSAND OAKS - To make sure children use crosswalks, ride bicycles with the traffic and take care with skates or the wildly popular scooters, police offered tips Tuesday about traffic safety.

University Elementary School was the site chosen by the Thousand Oaks Police Department for the kickoff of its fifth annual Safe and Fun Education program. Officers, firefighters and others will visit each school in the Conejo Valley Unified School District to remind students, parents and teachers about issues involving crosswalks, pedestrians, bicycles, in- line skates, skateboards and scooters.

``We make sure the kids remember to look both ways when they cross the street and walk with their bicycles when they're crossing a street,'' police Sgt. Claude Robillard said. ``But we also want the parents to remember to be careful when they're dropping off or picking up their children from the school.''

At University Elementary, parents are asked to follow a new traffic pattern sent to them this year in picking up or dropping off their children.

``It's a chaotic situation,'' said parent Annette Geller, who organized the assembly at the school. ``Parents are on their way to work or to drop off other siblings and are in a hurry. We see them stopping in cross walks, double parking and even doing an occasional U-turn. We're just trying to protect the kids and have everyone get in and out quickly and safely.''

Other safety tips - both on or off school campuses - include walking alongside a bicycle or a scooter, or carrying a skateboard, when crossing an intersection because pedestrians are easier for drivers to see and are traveling more slowly, allowing them to stop more quickly.

Robillard said one of the most common scenarios his officers try to avoid through their education is that of a car vs. a bicycle when the car is making a right turn.

``What happens is that a car approaches an intersection, the driver glances to the right because that would be the nearest hazard,'' Robillard said. ``Then typically he or she eases out and looks to the left and continues looking to the left as they proceed into the intersection to make the turn - not always seeing a bicycle coming up on the right. The bicycle almost always runs into the side of the car.''

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2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color in Conejo edition only) Fire Engineer Dan Rodriguez, left, and Firefighter Jason Rangel talk to students about safety at University Elementary.

(2 -- ran in Conejo edition only) Deputies Dan Hallinan, left, and Darin Rich demonstrate bicycle skills Tuesday for students at University Elementary.

Phil McCarten/Staff Photographer