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Students are hitting the books again and that also means many of them will be hitting the roads or taking to sidewalks to get back to the classroom.

Troy Police Chief Randall Barr said motorists should take extra care on the roads now that school is back in session.

“There is heavy vehicle traffic now that school is back in,” Barr said. “[Troy University] is also back in, and a lot of those students walk to class. Motorists need to pay attention to the sidewalks and special attention to the crosswalks. There will be a lot more pedestrian traffic.”

Barr said parents should also be more cautious during the next couple of weeks at Troy Elementary School and Charles Henderson Middle School.

“You’ll have a lot of new teachers at TES and CHMS and you’ll have a lot of new parents dropping off children,” Barr said. “It will take them a couple of weeks to learn the new routines and traffic patterns. Parents dropping off children should plan to leave a little early to give themselves plenty of time to drop off their kids. They need to have time to get the kids safely to school and not be in a rush.”

Bar said speeding is also a big concern, especially with more cars on the road during drop-off and pick-up hours at school. He said pedestrian safety is also a big concern.

“We’re going to have officers out working traffic safety at schools,” Barr said. “Pay attention to them and use your traffic signals so they know where you’re going.”