It’s 2 p.m. and you are so ready to finally go home. You walk out to your car and turn it on, but by the time you’re ready to pull out, a massive line to exit the parking lot has formed. It’s taking forever; there’s no stoplight and no cop to manage traffic, and no one is letting you out.
All you can think is not again…
The volume of traffic around South Forsyth High School can be attributed to a variety of factors, some of which are controllable, some of which aren’t.
There are about 3,000 students getting to school at the same time every day, which creates the perfect recipe for trouble.
With the school being so close to several major intersections and The Collections, young drivers do not have a lot of confidence facing these difficult turns and navigating the traffic.
According to the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Department’s Crime Event Map, there have been 420 accidents within a half-mile of South since Jan. 1 of this year.
The traffic conundrum is especially complicated during school arrival and dismissal times.
“Based on the volume of traffic that we see per 10 minute increments…over 2,000 cars are affected in a 30 minute increment [during student arrival],” said Corporal Zach Dobleman, South Forsyth High School resource officer.
During the time school is convening and dismissing, officers from the Sheriff’s Department are directing traffic at the front and back entrances of the school. When you’re entering or exiting the school at normal hours, there’s at least someone to help you navigate.
“And once school is in, it’s in,” said Corporal Dobleman.
But is it?
IE2 is an option for upperclassmen who don’t need to take all seven classes to graduate and instead get a free period for work, internships, or to simply go home. Because of this, many students leave the school day early, usually at the same time as their other upperclassmen peers, causing a lot of traffic.
“It’s one thing when there’s an adult directing traffic, but when it’s just kids trying to get out, it takes forever,” said SFHS senior Jessa Crossman.
There are about 650 students in the senior class alone, the majority having at least one IE2 on their schedule. Some students have reported it taking anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes to get out of school at non-peak hours.
“It varies, but when it’s bad, it’s pretty bad,” said SFHS senior Caroline Wolff.
Not to mention, when there’s no one directing traffic, it can seem more dangerous to the student drivers.
“There are so many ways to turn out of the school. It’s kind of like an accident waiting to happen,” said Caroline.
She’s not the only student who feels that way.
“Instead of turning left [out of school], I’ll turn right and go up to the light and make a U-turn. It’s safer,” said senior Max Pennington.
So, what can we do about this problem? Some people feel that a stoplight could help, as that’d mean there would be continuous traffic control. But while a traffic light may sound good in theory, there are some issues.
“In the middle of a school lane is not really a great spot for a traffic light because of the amount of traffic that’s limited to the hours that school is in,” said Corporal Dobleman.
Since the traffic light would only help while students are entering and exiting, when school is out, the light would not be as efficient, or might even cause unnecessary stoppages for drivers.
Another factor to be considered is the proximity of the lights.
With an additional light so close to Ronald Reagan Parkway and Majors Road, “a traffic light would probably cause more traffic issues,” said Corporal Dobleman.
What do you think? Are you flashing a red or green light on the installation of a traffic light?
