The Blue Zone is the school drop-off and pick-up zone, with special rules in order to keep our children safe and to keep traffic moving. Please remember to follow the Blue Zone rules when you drop off and pick up children from school.

Blue Zones are marked by signs and by blue-painted curbs. Their special rules are in effect Monday through Friday when school is in session. The basic idea is that when you are in the Blue Zone, you must stay with your car; you may not leave it. You should only stop safely, next to the curb, obeying all traffic laws. You should load and unload students quickly and most importantly, safely. If you will need to park or require more time, you should park farther from the school, in a legal spot, and walk from there.

The details of the ordinance, taken directly from The Newton Public Schools Website, are:

The Blue Zone ordinance states: No vehicle may park in a school drop off zone from 30 minutes prior to the scheduled start of school until the scheduled start of school. No vehicle may park in a school drop off zone from one hour prior to the scheduled end of school until 30 minutes after the scheduled end of school. Vehicles may stop in the school drop off zone during the above restricted times to engage in the dropping off or picking up of passengers, which shall not be permitted for a period of longer than one (1) minute. Parking is allowed in a school drop off zone outside of restricted times. For these drop off and pick up zones to work correctly, the following must occur: No vehicles may be parked or left unattended in a school drop off zone during the restricted times. This includes parents waiting for their child to come out of or go into the school. No illegally parked vehicles can be waiting near the school, for example in restricted parking areas, within corners, blocking driveways, bus stops, etc. Parents should not pick up students when double or tripled parked. Students must enter and exit on the sidewalk side of the vehicle. Other parking restrictions around the school area must be enforced.

In addition, please remember some additional Countryside-specific guidelines:

• Please, never park in the faculty parking lot during or immediately before school hours. Faculty members need to get into their spaces so they can be ready for the children. Moreover, and importantly, we have vans that bring students to school each day and pick them up to go home in the afternoon. They need access to the handicapped-parking spaces, the parking-lot door, and staff.
• Please do not attempt to make a U-turn anywhere around the school and definitely not on Dedham Street.
• If you need to park, please park on a side street. Please notice, however, if the street is narrowed due to snow, do not leave your car in a location that further narrows it. Please avoid parking on Woodcliff Road near the crossing guard when there is a lot of snow.
• Please be patient and considerate of your fellow Countryside parents and of the other people who use Dedham Street. While delays due to snow and traffic can be frustrating, please remember that everyone else is stuck, too.

Following the rules will make sure that everyone gets through the traffic both safely and as quickly as possible!