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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09 CROSSING GUARD UPDATE 10-20-09RT Agenda Item 9 AGENDA REPO Reviewed: City Manager Finance Director ~_ MEETING DATE: OCTOBER 20, 2009 TO: WILLIAM A. HUSTON, CITY MANAGER FROM: SCOTT M. JORDAN, CHIEF OF POLICE SUBJECT: CROSSING GUARD PROGRAM UPDATE SUMMARY: In April of this year, a warrant analysis was conducted of the existing 31 crossing guard posts. Based on the results of that study, coupled with input from Traffic Engineering and the Police Department's Traffic Division, recommendations were made to City Council on modifying the existing contract for crossing guards. During the August 4th City Council meeting, option two of the recommendations was adopted. This option included executing a contract with All City Management Services, Inc. to provide crossing guard services for 16 warranted posts with 22 positions and no noontime crossings. A costs saving of $221,425 was realized. The City Council directed staff to monitor the implementation of the new contract and to report back in October. The Council also directed staff to follow up with the Tustin Unified School District (TUSD) in an effort to reach common ground in the areas of cost sharing and/or implementation of a volunteer crossing guard program. TUSD is unable to share in the costs or implement a volunteer crossing guard program. However, TUSD is willing to partner with the City to approach Parent Teacher Organizations (PTOs) as a funding source for additional crossing guards, and to support efforts to educate students and parents on crossing the streets safely. RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended the City Council: 1. Maintain the current crossing guard contract and staffing levels; 2. Authorize staff to partner with TUSD personnel to explore the possible use of the PTOs as a funding source for the additional crossing guard posts in specified areas, and to further educate students and parents on crossing the streets safely; Crossing Guard Program Update October 20, 2009 Page 2 of 5 3. Direct staff to report back on the crossing guard program in the spring, before executing a second year of the existing contract. FISCAL IMPACT: None BACKGROUND: The prior Crossing Guard Services Program consisted of 31 locations throughout the City. The 31 posts were manned by 42 crossing guard personnel, staffed and managed by All City Management Services, Inc. (AGMs), with program oversight by the Police Department. Eleven of the posts were staffed by two crossing guards, one on each side of the street. In addition, eight posts (12 guards) were utilized during the noon hour to assist kindergarten students either leaving the morning kindergarten session or arriving for the afternoon kindergarten session. The warrant analysis was conducted in April 2009 to establish a benchmark and determine the need for crossing guard posts based on current student and traffic patterns. Complaints from parents and Tustin Unified School District (TUSD) personnel indicated the main concern at the schools was the volume of parents driving their children to school and dropping them off in the designated areas, not with children who walk to school. The warrant analysis determined six locations (Category 1) met the warrant criteria, based on pedestrian volumes and vehicular volumes. Ten intersections in Categories 2 and 3 of the study met warrant criteria in only one of the vehicular or pedestrian volumes. The warrant analysis determined 15 locations, Category 4 of the study, did not meet the warrant criteria, based on pedestrian volumes and vehicular volumes. In addition, the study recommended the elimination of eight posts (12 personnel) during the noon hour for arriving and departing kindergarten students. The TUSD requires an adult or sibling accompany the kindergarten student to and from school, which makes a crossing guard unnecessary. At its August 4t" meeting, the City Council approved executing a new contract with All City Management Services, Inc. to include 16 warranted posts with 22 guard positions (Categories 1 through 3) and no noontime crossings. During the meeting, the Council and the School Board President expressed concern that the TUSD's decision to reduce busing may impact the pedestrian and vehicle volumes during the morning and afternoon hours. The City Council directed staff to meet with Tustin Unified School District representatives to discuss entering into an agreement with the City to fund any additional crossing guard posts they may deem necessary, and/or to enter into an agreement to provide student or parent volunteer crossing guard posts. The Council asked staff to report back in October. Crossing Guard Program Update October 20, 2009 Page 3 of 5 DISCUSSION: Prior to the start of the school year, traffic officers met with the school principals to prepare for the coming year and to prepare for any impacts resulting from the reduction in crossing guards and busing. The meetings went well and working relationships were developed. The Police Department's Community Relations Unit also began developing an elementary school education program to educate young students on safely walking or riding their bicycles to school. This program was offered in conjunction with the annual bicycle safety program. Due to the changes in the crossing guard program, the Traffic Division restructured its working hours in an effort to monitor the various school locations. Motor officers worked shifts compatible with the schools and were assigned specific locations and schools. They filled out daily logs specific to this assignment. In addition to enforcement activities, they also monitored the number of students crossing, traffic flows and conditions, and other pertinent information. The motor officers reported that traffic volumes are heavy in the expected areas (Pioneer Middle School, Peter's Canyon Elementary, and Currie Thorman); however, the pedestrian volumes have not been a problem. They have seen an increase in the number of parents walking their children to school, and parents grouping students together to cross the streets. The parents grouping students together was noticed primarily in the south and southwest areas of the City. The officers said that traffic flow appears to have improved even in the impacted areas. With that said, a one to two month monitoring time is too short a duration. A six-month or even a full school year is necessary to properly assess the impacts of the reduction of crossing guards and the elimination of many bus routes. TUSD currently has 12 regular bus routes and 54 special education routes. From the officers' perspectives, the bus route reduction does not appear to have had a significant negative impact versus previous years. The Traffic Division still sees the same problem areas as in years past, and the problems are mostly vehicular in nature. The overall design of entrances and egresses at certain schools contributes to this problem. The only complaints received related to the reduction in crossing guard posts came from the northeast area of the City. No complaints were received from the south or southwest areas. That includes high volume locations such as Currie Middle School and Nelson Elementary. The following is statistical information regarding the number of citations and complaints: • 94 Citations were issued in areas where guards were removed. All the citations involved parents driving to or leaving school, and most of the violations were for speeding and double parking. Crossing Guard Program Update October 20, 2009 Page 4 of 5 There was one accident at Tustin Ranch Road and Rawlings involving a student. The accident was minor in nature, and it was a consensus of the officers that the accident would have occurred with or without a crossing guard. This was based on the driver's statement. • There were two complaints related to the reduction in crossing guards prior to the school year starting. There were three additional phone complaints, one from the Principal at Peter's Canyon Elementary and two from parents at the same school wanting their crossing guard back. There were 19 complaints after the accident, none since September 29tH Based on City Council direction, Captain Lewis and I met with TUSD Superintendent Dick Bray and members of his staff, to explore possible cost sharing avenues and to explore the possibility of parent or student crossing guards. During the meeting various cost sharing proposals were suggested. They included the following: • There was discussion of a 50/50 split in which the City would fund half and TUSD would fund half of the crossing guard services contract. • There was also a proposal that TUSD fund additional crossing guards they deem necessary over and above what has already been approved by the City. Or, it was suggested that the two agencies pay for an additional warrant study, and TUSD pay for any new posts that now meet the warrants in Categories 1-3 that did not meet those same warrants in April. The logic behind this proposal is that the TUSD be responsible for funding additional crossing guards now meeting warrants due to a reduction in busing. • There was a request that TUSD fund additional guards in the areas where the complaints are being received. The Superintendent and his staff said none of the cost sharing proposals was viable, due to significant reductions in their existing budget. They said they have reduced the number of teacher positions, non-teacher positions, non-academic programs, and are at serious risk of falling below the state-mandated reserve in the near future. Offering to share the cost of the crossing guard program would not be consistent with all the reductions they were forced to make in this year's budget. We also discussed a joint volunteer crossing guard program, managed by TUSD using either parents or students, and trained by Police Department personnel. The Superintendent and his staff declined. They said they were concerned about absorbing the liability of crossing students, and they were concerned about the reliability of the volunteers. They felt volunteers would be less likely to show up for a post than paid Crossing Guard Program Update October 20, 2009 Page5of5 employees. The Superintendent did say they would assist us in finding volunteers through the PTOs, as long as the City would manage the program and that the guards were City volunteers. One of the emails forwarded to the City concerning the crossing guard program came from the current president of one of the PTOs. In the email, the PTO president asked if it was possible for a PTO to pay for a crossing guard dedicated to an intersection near its school. This concept was also discussed with TUSD staff. The Superintendent felt this was an area that the City and the School District could partner together to address the crossing guard issue. He agreed that City and School District staff could stand side- by-side and approach the PTOs to see if they would be willing to fund any additional crossing guard that did not meet the April warrant study. Another area that may be explored is educating the parents on how to effectively group students and assist students in crossing the streets. Traffic officers saw this occur naturally without any prompting in some areas of the City. The City and the School District are already working in partnership in educating the elementary school students on pedestrian and bicycle safety. Educating parents on how to effectively group and cross students would be another opportunity for the City and the School District to stand side-by-side and help address this issue. Both the City and School District are suffering significant budget cuts, which led to some tough decisions being made related to crossing guards and busing. There are several existing partnerships to enhance safety in the schools, and working in partnership on this issue, and including parents and students, seems to be the best response. It certainly is consistent with our "Community Governance" philosophy. ~ r~ SCOTT M. JO AN Chief of Police