Traffic Situation Still On the Front-Burner

Parent volunteer Amie Rolfes reported at Tuesday's Booster Club meeting that neither the City of Omaha nor state officials of the Federal Highway Administration were able to help us reduce our traffic safety hazards in front of school. This is because there isn't quite enough car traffic and not quite as many students who need to cross Pacific Street to warrant a traffic light at the intersection.

If officials went ahead and put a light in, anyway, then they fear they could be successfully sued in future fender-benders or more serious accidents, since according to their statistically-derived standards, it would almost be more of a traffic hazard than a help to put a light in.

Amie reported receiving some encouraging conversations taking place with the Omaha Police Division and some nonprofit organizations on our behalf. These may result in an effective safety program in the spring, not involving a traffic light, but at least making the situation better than it is now.

Principal Chad Soupir announced that the new after-school plan of assembling all the students who want to cross Pacific Street in the cafeteria after school with a teacher crossing guard, and then going out together into the cold to cross all at the same time, is an innovation which should work well.

He urged parents who are dropping off or picking up their children at the back of the school to please, please pull as far forward along the curb as you can. That way, five or six carloads of kids can be dropped off or picked up at a time. That's much better for everybody than the slow and frustrating one-car-at-a-time pace that happens when every driver wants to park right in front of the school and delay everybody else.