Education
Educating parents and students on proper drop-of and pick-up process is essential in developing a safe and efficient system.
Regular reminders of drop-off and pick-up process from school officials to students and parents are one way to keep parents informed. Information provided to parents should be clearly stated, provide consistent messages, and be delivered regularly throughout the school year. Maps of the drop-off and pick-up area with traffic flow patterns are very helpful. It is often good to begin a new drop-off plan at the start of a new school year or after a break, and after sufficient notice has been given to parents and students about the new plan.
This newsletter from Baldwin Elementary School in California includes a front-page article on parking-lot safety. Apparently parents are routinely parking vehicles in the school bus red zone, and double and triple-parking.
This letter from Caroline Davis Intermediate School was sent to parents at the beginning of the school year to provide parents with the school's drop-off and pick-up guidelines, as well as promote carpooling.
Some schools hold traffic safety days to provide students and parents with useful information. Drivers are reminded of traffic safety principles and school drop-off and pick-up policies and process. At this time children can be recognized and rewarded for walking or bicycling to school. Drivers who are not following proper process can receive warnings from school personnel, parents or police. Giving small rewards, such as stickers or pencils, to students whose parents follow proper process may be more beneficial in correcting bad habits than punishing poorly behaved parents.
Communities with a large non-English speaking population may benefit from multi-lingual education literature, parking lot monitors, and events.