The Jefferson City Police Department says they have had very few complaints from the school district about the new traffic safety ordinance at Lewis and Clark Middle School.
Due to some safety concerns, the middle school implemented a new traffic safety ordinance on Tuesday, Feb. 21. In the past few years, the school has had a few accidents involving pedestrians. One, in particular, involved a substitute teacher being struck by a bus earlier this year.
The Director of School and Community Relations for Jefferson City Public Schools Amy Berendzen says parents got a little too comfortable with car rider pick up and drop off area. She is also a parent with a son at the school.
“There’s never a time frame or a time stamp on safety and that’s why we put this into action right now,” Berendzen said.
The ordinance no longer allows parent access to the school campus from the upper drive off Eastland Drive. Instead, students will be dropped off on the North side of the building.
There was confusion on Wednesday involving parents dropping students off at the Eastland Drive crosswalk, which is a traffic violation. It also caused some safety concerns. However, police are now monitoring the problem.
“We want to make sure that we educate all of the parents and family members of the drop off, and why we’re doing it and the proper procedure for doing so,” Jefferson City Police Captain Doug Shoemaker said. “Change is a little difficult and it just takes a little more time for some than others.”
Berendzen said the school district will be making the ordination permanent in the future. It is currently active for 90 days.