Student parking lot causing safety issues

Emilee Guernsey, Editor
October 2, 2015

Students going to and from school may be driving, walking, or riding a bike or skateboard. With all four of these forms of transportation, comes safety risks. CP students need to know how to properly drive, walk, etc. in order to stop and prevent any future accidents in the parking lot and on Cypress Creek.

CP’s School Resource Officer, Alan Gallagher, witnessed multiple accidents in the past school year and one this year.

“There are students who don’t pay attention when they are backing up and end up bumping into another car because they weren’t paying attention,” Gallagher said. “It’s already happened this year.”

Some of the proposals the AP’s and Gallagher have, include putting up safety signs around the parking lot and getting light up crosswalks.

“We are trying to retrain students on where the correct places to go are,” AP Vernon Rogers said. “Sometimes students drive through the wrong entrances and cut through the parking spaces.”

Not only are the AP’s concerned, but students as well, such as junior Maddie Meyers.

“I think that sometimes when school gets let out, everyone is in a rush to leave and trying to back out at the same time, so if everyone was just more patient and waited a little longer, it would be better,” Meyers said. “When I’ve backed up before looking around, someone has sped down the parking lot aisles and I had to stop quickly to not get hit because they weren’t going to be the one to slow down.”

The main cause for the accidents are a lack of awareness, according to Gallagher.

“There needs to be a way to get the students to be more cautious in the parking lot,” Gallagher said. “Students just need to be paying attention when driving.”

Students must be insured and have a parking permit if they are driving themselves to school.

“It’s easier to have everyone insured, and if there was an accident in the parking lot it’s better for the students to report it to an AP of Officer Gallagher because the ticket will be cheaper than a ticket from an officer outside the school,” Rogers said.

The AP’s are open to suggestions in trying to make the parking lot safer. If you have any ideas tell your AP or Officer Gallagher.