If a crossing guard is directing traffic in a school zone, you must:
- Follow the directions given by the crossing guard. ✓
- Copy what surrounding traffic is doing, despite the crossing guard's instructions.
- Assume the guard is not supposed to be directing traffic.
- Follow rules that would be in place if no children were present.
Answer: A. Follow the directions given by the crossing guard.
You must follow the directions given by the crossing guard.
Why this is the answer
The handbook's school zone section lists a School Crossing sign and tells drivers to slow down, watch for children, stop if necessary, and obey signals from any crossing guards. In the school zone sign descriptions, the guard's signals are treated as directions you follow. A separate section says that when children or crossing guards are in a crosswalk you must yield and stop at the stop line, not in the crosswalk. Both passages put the guard's direction ahead of your own judgment.
Why the other answers are wrong
- B. Copy what surrounding traffic is doing, despite the crossing guard's instructions. — Copying nearby traffic ignores the guard's signals, which the handbook says you must obey.
- C. Assume the guard is not supposed to be directing traffic. — Assuming the guard should not be directing traffic goes against the handbook, which explicitly tells drivers to obey crossing guard signals.
- D. Follow rules that would be in place if no children were present. — Acting as if no children were present is wrong because school zone signs tell you to watch for children at all times, and guards are there to protect them.
Remember it
Think of the guard as a live traffic signal at the school crossing: when the guard signals, that signal is what you obey.