Week of May 2, 2024

40 years ago (May 2, 1984)

“Traffic a hazard for children: Would flashing bus lights help”

The caption under an image of a school bus reads “School buses don’t flash their lights within Sherwood Park, so cars don’t have to stop and let the passengers cross. Officials say it teaches children to respect pedestrian rules; one parent says it’s dangerous.” Forty years ago a parent complained to the News about school buses not using their flashing lights in town after their child had a near-miss with a passing car after getting off the bus. The parent called for school buses to flash their lights in Sherwood Park like they did outside of town. In 1980 a provincial law banned the use of flashing school bus lights on streets with speed limits of 50 km/h or less. The Catholic School Board superintendent and the County transportation manager at the time said not everyone stopped for the flashing lights, even when they were used in town. They advocated that the current practice was safer since children were expected to cross the roads at cross walks and the nearest corners, teaching them pedestrian rules. Relying on flashing lights, they said, would give children a false sense of security.

30 years ago (May 5, 1994)

“Festival Days 1994 is on”

This week thirty years ago members of the Sherwood Park Kinsmen Club could breathe a sigh of relief as they finally secured a location to host their annual fundraiser carnival, Festival Days. A bylaw change caused them to lose their original location less than a month before the festival was supposed to begin. After three new site proposals were rejected by County Council, they finally agreed to let the club host Festival Days in the Broadmoor Centre field. Kinsmen Club members doubted the event would come back in the future if it was unable to happen in 1994.