Cars race for limited parking spots each school day, while attempting to beat the eight a.m. bell. Surrounding roads and especially parking lots of South are flooded with chaos where reckless driving cannot be tolerated.
As newly licensed drivers take on the roads, cell phones can be the number one distractor. It just takes one buzz to capture a driver’s attention, and glancing down for five seconds can fill surroundings with danger. Souths school police officer Jim LaBeau identified this problem and suggested an alternative.
“Cell phones are a big part of kids’ everyday lives now, but when you’re in the car you should set it down for those few minutes and enjoy a conversation. You don’t need to worry about what’s going on within your phone, and who you need to text within those couple minutes,” LaBeau said.
The combination of cell phones and driving with speed contributes to many risks including pedestrians. Elementary schools surround South and not every kid is going to use a cross walk. Evren Celebi ’27 is a driver himself and observes dangerous instances on a daily basis.
“Driving recklessly can ruin someone’s life instantly. Many people accelerate down Fisher Road, and it’s super dangerous especially when pedestrians come into play and try to cross the road,” Celebi said.
According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 20 percent of all vehicle crashes occur in parking lots. Since many parking lot collisions involve only property damage, many often go unreported so the real number is most likely much higher. Particularly within the first few weeks of school, Molly Kendall ‘26 noticed her peers parked in S-lot were eager to leave which resulted in close calls to accidents.
“People are racing to get to lunch, which is not smart. If we had a longer lunch period, we would be able to drive safely and carefully, but we don’t have time for that,” Kendall said. “Leaving the S-lot can be scary because kids just want to get home at the end of the day.’’
Distractions vary between adjusting music and talking with friends, but driving slowly is crucial within parking lots full of students rushing to their cars to get home quickly. Officer LaBeau has recognized between the honking of students cars, it is essential to endure calmness when exiting the S-lot.
“It’s going to be a bit of chaos and patience involved for 10 minutes. We’ll get you out safely while making you turn right, and you might have to do a couple of circles to get to your street, but at the end of the day top priority is safety,” LeBeau said.
