New feature with 2013.20: Garmin has added school zone speed limits

Does anyone have a list of the Garmin models that support the school zone alerts (the ones built into the map, not Custom POI alerts)?

cool. save the kids.

I contacted Garmin support today to ask why my brand new Nuvi 3590 didn't show School Zones for my city (Salem, OR). He said the 3590 and 3597 have the ability to show the zones, but some area don't have the data. It's one of the reasons I bought the 3590, it shows the feature in one of the product screen shots they have online!

He suggested this site to find the POI's. I have to admit I'm kind of at a loss since I'm switching from years of Magellan.

I really wish it worked, but maybe it will with one of the updates. I wish I knew if I could submit the ones I know to Garmin for future updates.

And I thought I was seeing things..

Welcome to The Factory.

If I were you, I'd first wait until the new 2015.10 map update comes out, since we may have it available in the next week or two. It's always possible that your school zones will appear in the new map. If not, they likely will appear in some future update. Right now, I think Garmin states that they have about 80% of the US covered for school zones.

If you want school zones for your area before Garmin offers them, it can be done:

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/42419

Before attempting the Custom POI from the above link, I suggest you get familiar with using POI Loader, downloading and adding custom icons and audio, setting alerts, etc. Your nuvi 3590 does require wav files for Custom Audio and can not use mp3 audio.

Check around The Factory. You'll find a lot of useful info, useful data and very helpful folks.

Let me add my welcome to that of Craig

There is a "Learn" button in the upper right of this page next to "red light cameras" that takes you to a Getting Started page. It is worthwhile visiting this page.

To make navigation easy, most browsers provide the following option. When you want to follow a link - but still keep your current page open - you can hold down the "Ctrl" key as you left-click on a link. That action will open a new "Tab" in your browser up on the "Tab" bar. When you then left-click on that new "Tab", you will follow the link - leaving the "Tab" you are now reading open and available to click on and return here.

So, using the "Learn" link, you might try the "Ctrl" - left-click sequence and then return here. You can return by either "X-ing" out of the "Getting Started" page (using the "X" on the "Tab" itself) or just left-clicking on the "Tab" for the page you are on right now.

Since you are new here, I encourage you to go through a couple of the Tutorials.

The first link makes sure the settings on your computer are such that you can do more advanced POI loading.
http://www.poi-factory.com/node/30393

The next link helps you make a backup of your GPS by attaching it to your computer. (NEVER do anything to your GPS until you have a backup). It also assures that you put your (newer) unit into a state where you can see all of the folders there.
http://www.poi-factory.com/node/30394

Let us know how we can help you enjoy your GPS.

Good to know.

The 2013.20 show the speed limit on school zone and the 2014.40 does not, and I used to have the 2013.20 version too and never notice any change in the speed limit when driving near to a school zone?On my garmin 1450? I tough that all those new improvement are part of the new map update version?

Only a very small number of schools in Baton Rouge and New Orleans generated alerts.

It seems Garmin was testing the feature back then. Also, it only worked on certain models - I don't recall the 1450 being one.

In most places school is back in session and that means school speed zones are in effect. Where I live the school speed zone is 15 mph.

Most places where you live maybe but for a lot of us school is not in until Sept 2, but a good reminder none the less.

School starts here this Monday Aug. 25. My daughter is so ready. Girls are 10, 9, and 7. The 9 is special needs and a hand full by her self.
My daughter, who is a stay at home mom and finishing college next May, loves it when school is out and loves it when school begins.

Have yet to see any school zone warnings in my city.

Schools in our neighborhood have started the fall semester for a week now.

The school zone alert is incomplete. The warning pops up only when there is a change of speed limit.

Regardless, please be on the alert travelling in the school zones.

Thanks for the info be back in ststes in a few days to check out this new feature

I get the alerts on my 2797 but never noticed the speed limit changing. I'll have to check this out.

If your 2797 is like my 3597, the speed limit drop only occurs on weekdays during school hours. If I remember correctly, my unit shows no alert on weekends and an alert, but without a speed limit change on weekdays outside of school hours.

In our neighborhood, and I think in other municipalities in California too, the speed limit is 25 miles/hour in the residential areas without a posted speed limit. The speed limit in school zones when children are present is also 25 miles/hour. Garmin's school zone alert thus does not include these schools regretfully. A good fraction of the schools in my neighborhood, however, are in situated along these residential streets and do not generate alert.

Just be attentive and watch out for the presence of pedestrians, school children or not at all times.

I went to door co. Anc noticed this feature...nice

Maybe Garmin is better than a one dollar swiss watch.

This is new to me since I hardly enter school zones at those hours.

Thanks!

The Zumo 590 gives a proximity alert for school zones, and post the speed limit. It seems to display the school speed limits at all times, and is not "aware" of when school is in session.

School zone alerts are not offered on all vehicular Garmin GPS devices. Charlesd45 has reported it's offered on the new nuvi models ending in xxx7 or xxx8 and also is offered on the the RV760. Check the spec of your model to see if they'll be offered.

More info:

http://support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?c...

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/41301

And I get school zone alert.

I pass through several school zones along my route to work, but no alerts along the way in this morning with my 2595. (with latest map and FW) Looks like it's not in the cards for New England with this unit.

If the feature is not on your unit you may want to look at this. http://www.poi-factory.com/node/42419

I'm not sure about the 2595—and if that model can't display school zone alerts, then only a newer model with the school zones feature or a future firmware update for your 2595 will cause them to occur.

But if the 2595 is school-zone-capable (and for all other models that can offer school zone alerts), the lack of an alert at particular schools is not permanent—future map updates may add your currently missing alerts.

Thanks guys! I usually check after each map release because I think that someone in here ("WAASup" maybe? ) with a 2595 in another part of the country reported that they were seeing the alerts. I think I will go ahead and load the list from here because it is very useful this time of year and I travel through some very strict towns on the way.

Here's a link to the Garmin devices that offer school zone alerts:

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/42415

If your unit is on the list, you get alerts. It may well be that if your GPS model isn't on the list, it can also get alerts and if so, you should contact the maintainer of the faq, jgermann, with your findings so he can update the faq.

I've never seen school zone alerts near Toronto,but I did some testing for schools around rame1012's location back in 2012:

School Zone Screenshots From 2595

Louisiana School Zone Alerts

Will do. I did some poking around and "WAASup" a few posts back in this thread did report getting alerts down south, but I do see that he has other Nuvis in addition to the 2595 so I don't know which of his was getting them. (The 2595 is not on the poi-factory list) Maybe he'll chime in here and specify which one is providing the school alerts. I'll continue to check with each map update and will post if things change. Thanks again!

I checked to see if the 2595 was advertised by Garmin as showing school zone alerts and it is not.

At the moment, Garmin does not have a FAQ giving us the models that have built in school zone alerts so one must look at the "specs" of new models as they come out.

I have added the 55, 56, 65, and 66 to the FAQ because their specs do mention School Zone Alerts.

I noticed that too. I see that WAASup has checked in to confirm that he -has- seen them on his 2595, so maybe there's hope that it will come to my area of the country someday with a future map update. If I ever see it come to life on my 2595, I'll be sure to give you a heads up! Thanks again!

Alot of schools around hwere are year round. I wonder what will happen when Summer arrives?.

I don't think the 1490 has this feature. I drive through 2 schools zones for 4 schools on the way to work. I have never seen an alert on my GPS.

Did a test drive with 2595 and 3597 side-by-side. School zone alerts showed up on the 3597 and not on the 2595. They have never showed up on the 2595 for me in any case. We could always hope...

As far as I could tell, Garmin's algorithm for the School Zone Alert is rather simple. Daytime (??hr-??hr), Monday through Friday and when the school zone speed limit is lower than the regular speed limit.

It is not aware of the Summer/Winter breaks and (probably) other holidays.

There are three schools in my immediate neighborhood. None of them show alert. The street speed limits is 25 miles/hr on all the surrounding streets, same as the school speed limit when children are present.

The best protection for school children and all pedestrians are to be on the alert ourselves and be mindful of them and drive carefully.

This is the City of Winnipeg list of School Zones with reduced speed as at September 1, 2014:

http://www.winnipeg.ca/publicworks/PDF/Transportation/School...

The Province of Manitoba has passed legislation and regulation to allow each Municipality to make its own bylaws. the Provincial regulation is here:

http://web2.gov.mb.ca/laws/regs/annual/2013/136.pdf

Hi computerperson:

Chickenhawk has created a POI file for Winnipeg Schools with reduced speed zones. You can find it here:

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/43384

I created a very simple one earlier (link below). It works well enough but I find Chickenhawk's more accurate.

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/43377

Please let both of us know if you come across a school zone that is not in the POI file. Thx.

Between the two of us, we compiled as accurate a POI list as possible. If you follow the instructions on the download page, you will find it will alert you to Winnipeg school zones if you are going above the 30 kmh reduced speed limit on the actual street that are affected. It took a lot of work but it reduces false alarms by not alerting on any close streets where the reduced speed is not legally required.

The problem with a user-created POI file versus the Garmin factory school zone alert is that there is no way to alert only on the days and times legally required. (7AM to 5:30PM, Monday to Friday, September to June)

Currently, the Garmin school zone file does NOT show the school zones in Winnipeg, so our POI files are the only choice. I am guessing that Garmin may not get around to mapping school zones in Winnipeg, and if they do, they may not match the actual legal zones as set by the City of Winnipeg. Our user-created POI file in the link above DOES match the actual legal placements. (It was mapped directly into RoadTrip and each street was individually placed to comply with the actual placement of the signs.)

And by the way, the reason we did this is simple: it was way safer to have drivers driving through school zones with their heads-up watching for kids than to have them with their heads buried in their speedometers.

how do i turn the alerts off on my 2598, i don't really want a ping every time I'm in a school zone, looked on all the forums

Per Garmin it cannot be disabled. Haven't seen anyone mention a hack yet to disable it.

Why am I receiving School Zone alerts on my device?
http://support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?c...

02/24/2015

There may be times when you will see a School Zone alert display on your device even when it is not during school zone hours. An alert will display as an orange indicator and provide an audible chime under the following circumstances:
◦During the posted school zone hours, if those hours are known (included in the map data)
◦Weekdays between 7am-5pm, if specific school zone hours are NOT known (NOT included in the map data)

Currently, not all school zone hours are listed for known school zones. Also, the devices are not able to disable the school zone alerts.

I have been alerted to some school zones where i don't drive often(other towns)I have not had any school zone alerts where i live and i drive through school zones daily!!
Have a DNN992 POI'S added from this site.The top bar on GPS goes red and shows school zone i did not notice if speed limits changed however.

The Garmin alerts are smart alerts. From the faq:

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/42419

Newer Garmin automotive GPS devices now offer school zone alerts. These alerts are amazing in that they alert in various ways depending on day-of-week and time-of-day. My experiences with a nuvi 3597, a 2014 Garmin device, to date show that Garmin's factory-installed school zone alerts behave in this way: driving through one on a school day during school hours gives a visual and audio alert and the nuvi speed limit is lowered to the school zone speed limit; driving through one on a school day before or after school hours results in the same alerts but without the speed limit change; and on weekends, no alert occurs at all.

Garmin web site " not every school zone may be covered. This data is built into the mapping file and is updated along with the map data when you download map updates to your device". So hopefully the coverage will continue to get larger for the built in scool zones. I know in my home area I get plenty of alerts and when we travel .I have gotten alerts for school zone locations that you would not think would be in the map data yet. See Faq http://www.poi-factory.com/node/41321

Harmon would publish a list of all the school zones they have included.

They still have not included Toronto area in Canada for school zones. Hamilton, Ontario was added almost two years ago but Toronto still missing it.

They still have not included Toronto area in Canada for school zones. Hamilton, Ontario was added almost two years ago but Toronto still missing it.

Never had/noticed anything here when going thru school zones

The four models in your profile don't offer school zones.

Like others said the list is not complete. I have a school zone around the corner from where I live and my 2598 has never alerted to it when I drive through it. Yet other school zones I drive through regularly do alert.