By Kevin Ma
It's the first day back at school at Elmer S. Gish School, and Maya Asdaghi is on the front lines. Armed with a fluorescent yellow vest and a handheld stop-sign, it's up to her and her fellow crossing guards to keep students safe.
And there're a lot out there to guard against. So far, the Grade 6 student says she's seen people speeding, running red lights, blocking driveways and running across the street when the light's green.
"We had a person run right through our arms," she said, referring to the gate she and her fellow guards form to stop people from crossing.
Thousands of students headed back to school Monday after the end of summer break. With them came plenty of bad drivers whose behaviours put pedestrians at risk.
Grade 7 student Isaac Finlayson said he saw one driver pull a U-turn in front of Gish this morning.
"He drove on the sidewalk and turned around a tree to get on the road!" he said. When he criticized the driver, the driver got mad at him.
"I could drive better with my big toe!"
About 800 students arrive at Gish each morning, said school principal Erin Steele, almost all of which show up in one 20-minute rush.
"We have about 70 cars a day," he said, in addition to 13 buses and numerous cyclists and pedestrians. The heavy traffic is due in part to the fact that the school is the only place in St. Albert to offer the Cogito and Logos programs.
The school has about 10 staff members out each morning to direct cars and pedestrians, Steele says. They've created dedicated car and bus lanes, fenced off a hill that was letting kids slide into the bus lane during winter, and, as of this year, banned people from turning left onto Akins Dr. in front of the school as those turns caused major traffic jams in the past.
RCMP and bylaw officers are out in force this week to enforce traffic laws around schools, said Cpl. Laurel Kading. They had not issued any tickets as of Tuesday morning, but had given plenty of warnings for drivers double-parking, blocking driveways and parking in bus lanes.
Grade 9 student J'Lyn Matte said she's seen an improvement in safety on the bus after nine years of going to Gish.
"The bus drivers are more focused on kids' safety. Before, they were just focused on getting to the destination."
That led to incidents like one two years ago where her bus driver hit three cars while just driving down the street.
"She slammed on the brakes and we had to wait three hours for a new bus," she recalls, amused.
There is a lot of stupid drivers out there, said Grade 7 student Kenton Zawaduk, who walks to Gish most days. He used to have a neighbour that would test out supercharged cars by drift-racing around the block, for example.
Make sure that you know a driver has stopped for you before you cross the road is his advice to students.
"A lot of people look like they're stopping and they might accelerate because they're talking on their phone or something."
Look both ways before crossing and make eye contact with the driver, adds Grade 6 crossing guard Tyson Mollenkoph. Cyclists need to dismount their bike before crossing, and should have a bell or horn and a helmet for their bike.
Parents need to take their time and pay attention when driving kids to school, Steele said.
"All kids should be safe on their way to school, not just your kid."
