York school safety concerns prompt leaders to change traffic flow

School leaders in York plan to change the after-school traffic flow around Jefferson Elementary School to address safety concerns raised by parents who complained to the school board.

Assistant Superintendent Amy Hagner said the change in the traffic pattern would create two more loops for cars to park on school property as parents wait for their children to be dismissed.

Parents complained that a long traffic backup up on U.S. 321 outside the school made it hard for drivers leaving the school to see to the left as they pull onto the four-lane road.

Hagner said school leaders, who spent several days observing the traffic, believe the extra parking loops will solve the problem. “If all that traffic is looped on our property, as parents are leaving they should be able to have a clear view,” she said.

Katie Clinton, a York parent of three students, asked school board members for help with traffic safety in September. She said she narrowly avoided being hit by a truck at the school last spring.

“A lot of parents have contacted me,” Clinton told the board. “We want some type of solution that we can get in and out of our school and not have to worry about being hit.”

Hagner said the problem with traffic being backed up on U.S. 321 and causing visibility problems happens after school, but has not been a problem before school.

Hagner said the district changed the traffic flow in front of the school to create more room for cars by cutting out some curbing, laying down gravel and adding posts where chains can be attached.

She said the before-school traffic flow will remain unchanged.

After school, however, she said, chains will be hung to redirect cars into a traffic line that includes two extra loops. A blue line will be painted for cars to follow, she said.

Hagner said she expects to begin the new traffic flow soon. She said district officials are waiting for the posts that were added to dry and for parents to be notified by the school of the change.

This story was originally published November 24, 2015 at 12:04 PM with the headline "York school safety concerns prompt leaders to change traffic flow."