The usage of the student drop-off area has been a challenge recently because they become highly crowded in the moments before school begins. Although people complain about the high volume of traffic in the parking lot, there are easy solutions available to avoid getting stuck in a traffic jam. 

“I think if you go to any school, you are going to see a line ten minutes before the bell,” principal John Pehrson said. “If students or parents are frustrated with the traffic…come about 15 minutes before the start of school. There is not even one car in the driveway.”

If students come to school as little as 15 minutes before class starts they will not be stuck in traffic jams in the parking lot, which can reduce stress on both students and parents. 

A major issue with the traffic along the drop-off line is that people are not following the rule that parents should drive to the very front of the line, which allows more cars to go through each time. Pehrson and other supervisors at the drop-off areas regulate the traffic and encourage cars to move forward in line. Additionally, if more students can get out of the car faster, then the drop-off line will be reduced.

“You shouldn’t take longer than two minutes to go from the beginning to the end; as soon as you enter that should be very fast,” assistant principal Kris Linville said.

On the other hand, there will be a handful of juniors who will drive next year, which will help relieve the crowded situation, especially in the drop-off line. 

“When kids drive their own car, they actually get to park, and that will relieve traffic as well, so actually less kids will be dropped off,” Linville said. “We still will have freshmen, sophomores dropped off, but we won’t have as many juniors dropped off; we will have more juniors driving.”

The crowded drop-off line should not cause a problem, as long as students come a bit earlier to school or they get out of their cars quickly, making the whole process more efficient.