Zone of confusion
There seems to be more than a little confusion about how the schools will react to the Smith Level Road widening. The board of education did not help by taking a vague position on the latest version of the plan saying it will wait for the road to be built before deciding how it might change walk zones and bus routes.
While there may be all layers of engagement by the system on the road changes, we are not aware of them, and all the public knows is that the walk zones of three schools won’t be decided until after the concrete sets.
Now that the Carrboro Board of Aldermen has delayed its decision on the Smith Level plan until the fall, we’d like to see a little more input from the district.
How students and parents get to Culbreth Middle, Frank Porter Graham Elementary and Carrboro High will be greatly influenced by extensive – and expensive – additions to sidewalks and bike routes.
Further, a roundabout planned for the intersection at Rock Haven Road is a critical feature for getting high school students safely across Smith Level. Both of these aspects deserve a more thoughtful and thorough response from the schools.
This is not just some academic point. Millions of taxpayer dollars will be spent on the road and the sidewalks. And while the growth of the area is one factor in the need for improvements to the road, peak traffic is driven mainly by the conveyance of elementary, middle and high school scholars.
If you’ve lived here long enough, you know that many of the traffic tie-ups in Chapel Hill and Carrboro are connected with K-12 education, in large part because so many families choose the parent-chauffer over the school bus or a long walk or bike ride.
Because of that, the school system needs to be a consistent partner in the planning process for road improvements. It is also important because of the confusion that surrounds walk zones and bus routes.
As Carrboro Transportation Board chair Charlie Hileman pointed out on Tuesday night, a walk zone doesn’t automatically increase walking. It just means that the school won’t serve that area with a bus route. The decision to walk or ride a bike or drive is based more on safety than lines on a map.
We applaud community groups like the Smith Level Road Task Force and local participants in the Safe Routes to School program for taking a proactive approach to increasing, safely, the number of students who get to school without the use of an automobile.
School officials at all levels can play a critical roll in improving the use of alternative transportation and decreasing traffic congestion. That’s why the board of education’s decision to take a wait and see approach on Smith Level is disappointing. We recommend they consider a U-turn.
Thanks, Charlie
The Citizen owes a big thanks to the many student interns who have taken on the sometimes exhilarating, but often tedious task of producing a weekly newspaper.
This week, one of our favorites hits the trail.
Charlie Tyson came to work with us last year and has been willing and able to take on a myriad of assignments from writing stories and briefs to updating web materials. He is one of those young people who are so involved you wonder where they find the time. In addition to working with us, Charlie also is editor of The Echo, East Chapel Hill High’s student newspaper.
He’s done all this with a spirit and energy that’s been an inspiration. His willingness to stay cheerful and witty – often a courageous act amid us curmudgeons – made this place and our weekly task a little more pleasant.
We wish him the very best on the road ahead.
Correction
We misidentified an East Chapel Hill High School soccer player in a photo in last week’s paper. The player in the photo was Hannah Gardner.
At the public hearing on Smith Level Road, I asked the Carrboro Board of Alderman to contract with an outside group like the Highway Safety Research Center to conduct a bicycle and pedestrian safety audit of DOT’s proposed plan. The School Board and parents must have confidence in these plans if they are going to make the decision to promote walking and bicycling. Hopefully, this type of audit will become a standard practice with road improvement/construction projects around schools so that elected officials and parents will have feedback from experts whose sole effort is to promote safety before they make any final decisions.