Parents at Shatford Memorial Elementary School in Hubbards want abetter and safer crosswalk in front of their school. School advisory committee chairman Gord Tate says parents wantchanges to the St. Margarets Bay Road crossing, which has an oldorange crosswalk sign overhead. He said drivers will sometimesdrive through without stopping for pedestrians or speed through the50 km/h zone. "There is really no design to it," he said."There has been no effort since (the orange sign went up) toupgrade it in any way." Tate said visibility of pedestrians waiting to cross is not good,especially those in the shadows on the opposite side of the streetfrom the school. Drivers are used to going through the crosswalk without stoppingbecause students only cross at the beginning and end of the schoolday, he said. Parents asked the Transportation Department to look at thecrosswalk, but Tate said his understanding is that the departmentcame at midday, saw one person use the crosswalk and didn"tthink any changes were warranted. "I think you have to make those decisions based on whenpeople are actually using it," he said. A month and a half ago, Tate said, a uniformed RCMP officer wasstanding at the crosswalk with the school principal and cars weregoing through without stopping. "It"s that kind of crosswalk where people justdon"t notice that they"re in that zone," he said. Tate isn"t aware of anyone ever being hit in the crosswalk,"but I"ve witnessed a few near misses and some of thosemoments where you cringe and say, ‘Oh please, I hope that carstops in time." I"ve stood there with my children morethan once and watched cars go through." He said parents think a newer-style overhead sign with flashinglights might be better, but they want the department to look at thesituation again and make some recommendations. "Those lights are expensive, we understand that," Tatesaid. "Really, what our question is, is what else could bedone there? Is it a matter of cutting back some of the trees toincrease visibility, or painting the lines so you can see thembetter, or advanced warning? "Maybe it is an overhead light, and maybe it has to bebudgeted in a year or two, but we do feel as a school communitythat it warrants some kind of action there and we would like someone to help us come up with solutions." Parents, students, RCMP officers and school administrators plan tohand out traffic safety information to motorists near the crosswalkbetween 7:45 a.m. and 8:15 a.m. today when students are beingdropped off. RCMP spokeswoman Const. Tammy Lobb says the school is on awell-travelled road. "We"re just encouraging people to slow down," shesaid, adding that the Mounties generally try to be around schoolzones at busy times to enforce speed limits. Transporation Department spokesman Steve Smith said staff havereviewed the crosswalk and are confident it is safe. "Our district"s traffic supervisor will be happy tomeet with any parents group to talk to them about theirconcerns," Smith said. He said new legislation that goes into effect this fall will dropthe speed limit in school zones to 30 kilometres per hour whenchildren are present. ( ifairclough@herald.ca ). The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as One Touch Steam Tornado Manufacturer , China Stainless Steel Hand Blender, and more. For more , please visit Kitchen Aid Grater today!
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