Student-Pedestrian Safety Options Eyed for Schools

Members of the Board of Education heard proposals Tuesday night from the police on methods to increase student pedestrian safety outside Madison schools.

Sgt. John Keymer, of the police traffic safety department, explained a plan to designate one-way traffic eastbound on Glenwild Road during the peak morning dropoff time of 8 a.m. to 8:45 a.m., then again from 3 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. for afternoon pickup at Torey J. Sabatini School.

This would force all parents to park on the south side of Glenwild—the side of the road nearest to the school—so no students would have to cross the street to meet their ride.

A few board members wondered if this measure would solve the problems for both students and residents along the road and one asked if an ordinance would be required to implement the plan.

“No, we’re just going to try it and see if it works,” Keymer said, adding that if it didn’t work, they would try something else, including possibly turning the one-way around to westbound traffic.

Patrolman Chad Rybka then updated efforts to improve safety of crosswalks at Madison Junior School.

He said approval had been obtained from the state to implement several measures, including the installation of portable pedestrian stop signs. Other proposals include a reduction of speed from 30 to 25 miles per hour while school is in session and permanent road markings to identify the area as an official school zone, including blinking school zone lights. Rybka, however, said some of these initiatives could take as long as a year or two to gain approval.