LAUSD welcoming kids, parents back to school with new COVID rules, safety warnings

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Hundreds of thousands of kids are returning to school on Monday as Los Angeles Unified School District opens its new year.

The district has relaxed some of the COVID protocols from last year. Mask wearing and weekly testing are no longer required, though face coverings while indoors are still strongly encouraged.

Students who may have been exposed to someone with COVID will no longer have to quarantine the way they were required to in the past.

RELATED: LAUSD scaling back requirements for COVID testing, other protocols

When children return to their Los Angeles Unified School District classrooms in two weeks, they will find a new set of COVID-19 protocols that are scaled back from the 2021-22 school year.

But officials are also hoping to keep kids safe in other ways. Police officials are reminding parents and drivers there will be a lot more cars on the roads Monday and more kids walking to school.

That means driving slowly while near schools and being prepared for heavier traffic.

Statistics indicate the leading cause of death for children under 14 is vehicle accidents.

"It is back to school," said LAPD Capt. Andrew Neiman. "There's gonna be a lot more traffic. So even if you don't have kids, give yourself more time to get back to work or wherever you have to go tomorrow. Because the roads are gonna be probably two-thirds more crowded than they normally are."