Parent traffic hazardous to student safety

Implications

Many parents look forward to kids going back to school, but dread returning to the daily hassle of getting them to and from school. And parents may be sending mixed messages to their kids: preaching the need to be safe but failing to follow the school traffic rules themselves.

Most schools have a plan to manage traffic with specific lanes for parents and buses to drop off and pick up. Usually, these lanes minimize the extent to which children would have to walk in front of or between cars. Problems occur when parents park in a lane that is supposed to keep moving, disrupting the traffic flow; in response, other parents drop off or pick up their child in the middle of the road or other non-authorized locations, forcing their child to dodge between other cars. The danger is exacerbated when parents are on their phone, in a hurry, or otherwise distracted.

This Mott Poll report reflects the views of parents of children 6-12 years. These elementary school-age children may be particularly vulnerable to traffic-related injuries because they are less skilled at judging when it is safe to cross the street. Therefore, the responsibility for keeping kids safe lies primarily with the adults in the school community – parents, bus drivers, school officials, and law enforcement.

It is clear from this poll that parents want school officials to be more proactive in addressing school traffic problems. Most parents support efforts to clearly mark and direct the traffic flow using cones, gates or other barriers. They want school officials outside at the beginning and end of the school day, making sure parents and bus drivers are following the safety rules. Some schools have law enforcement officers onsite to enforce speed limits and other traffic regulations.

As a last resort, school officials may decide to suspend or ban parents who repeatedly violate safety procedures from driving onto school grounds. This should be done carefully to ensure that parents don’t choose another option that would be even more dangerous, such as dropping off their child on a busy road outside of school grounds. It may be helpful to use the school newsletter and “backpack mail” to remind parents about the importance of following traffic safety procedures, and the penalties parents may face if they violate them.

One way for schools to decrease the traffic congestion near the school is to encourage more students to walk, bike or ride a scooter to school. These activities provide daily exercise for children and can increase their self-confidence. However, this Mott Poll highlights that only 1 in 10 children walk or ride a bike/scooter to school.

Some parents do not allow their child to walk or ride a bike/scooter to school because of safety concerns. Schools can alleviate parent worry by implementing specific strategies: informing parents of safe routes to school that have crosswalks and bike lanes; and working with city officials or parent-teacher associations to place crossing guards at busy intersections.

Parents can take steps to prepare their child to travel safely to and from school. An important strategy is for parents to do a test run together with their child to agree on the safest route to school and identify potential hazards. When possible, parents can point out the homes of family friends or familiar neighbors where children can go for help. Parents should make sure children consistently look both ways for traffic before proceeding into an intersection, even if there is a crosswalk. Parents can introduce themselves and their child to the crossing guard. When schedules allow, parents might accompany their child on the way to or from school make sure they are following good safety habits, and to be a part of a broader community of parents who ensure that all children can travel safely.