Midland Park November 17, 2010 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • Page 11 In-street signs, education suggested for safety The Midland Park Police Department has recommended in-street signs painted on Prospect Street and an aggressive student education program as means of increasing pedestrian safety in the area of Midland Park High School. Lt. Bernard Vandenberg made these recommendations to the mayor and council after analyzing the school zone crosswalks and walking patterns following a complaint from a Donna Lane parent that her child had almost been struck by a car while she was in the crosswalk on her way to school. Vandenberg has been the traffic officer for the past 12 years. “It can be a very effective visual deterrent to have a sign in the roadway at each crosswalk. This area would be suitable to accommodate these signs as the roadway is wide enough to allow safe passage of vehicles, yet it would cause the operators to slow down when faced with a sign in the roadway,” Lt. Vandenberg said in his report to the governing body. No county approval would be required, he said. Vandenberg said he would not recommend eliminating the school zone or the crosswalk in front of the Children’s Therapy Center (formerly St. Thomas More School at the Church of the Nativity), nor did he recommend posting a crossing guard at the crosswalk in front of the high school. That post was eliminated almost 20 years ago, and Vandenberg said there is no record of any pedestrian being struck or nearly struck by a vehicle in that area. Police Chief John Casson, present at last week’s meeting of the mayor and council, said he agreed with Vandenberg’s report and noted that perhaps stanchions announcing a pedestrian crossing could also be placed near the crosswalks. He argued against reducing the length of the school zone, noting that the flashing lights put drivers on notice well ahead of the crosswalk. Councilman Patrick “Bud’ O’Hagan suggested posting signs as to the length of the school zone, so that motorists would know that there are two schools in the area. Casson said he would ask the county if these signs would be permitted. Mayor Joseph Monahan suggested installing a traffic signal at the crosswalk to stop all traffic when activated by a pedestrian. He said perhaps the borough could apply for a “safe walk to school” grant to Vandalism report (continued from page 7) of various positive behaviors in their lesson plans, and students were encouraged to wear clothing that corresponded to a specific character trait to promote that behavior. For example, one day, students were asked to wear yellow to represent respect. On subsequent days, students wore red to represent caring, purple in honor of Stop Homophobic Abuse Day, orange to represent fairness, and green to represent responsibility. Students also recognized Random Acts of Kindness Day and wore their Climate T-shirts or gray. Students wore blue for trustworthiness in recognition of AntiBullying Day; red, white, and blue in honor of citizenship; celebrated Halloween with the Student Council Day; and observed White-out Day with the Rachel’s Challenge assembly. Both schools hosted Rachel’s Challenge for the student population and Indian Hills High hosted the eighth graders from schools in the district. In addition, Indian Hills hosted an evening community event for parents, teachers, and community leaders. Rachel’s Challenge honors Rachel Joy Scott, the first person killed at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999. Indian Hills Principal Al Evangelista also spoke to the students in his school about preventing and reporting bullying, which often leads to violence. The report on violence and vandalism is required under the 1982 Public School Safety Law, which was enacted by the New Jersey State Legislature in response to the problem of violence and vandalism in New Jersey’s public schools. cover the costs. Casson said he believed such a devise at that location would not meet the state criteria and would not be permitted. Resident Nancy Bargmann suggested a general school announcement be made over the public address system at dismissal time suggesting caution crossing the street. She also said email notices could be sent home to parents to speak to their children about pedestrian safety. Borough Administrator Michelle Dugan said the Joint Insurance Fund, of which the borough is a member, would have available a DVD on pedestrian safety which could be played for students at the school. Vandenberg said that he had addressed the subject in the past during Driver Education classes, but he noted that the message should go to other than 10th and 11th graders. “Based on my experience, it has been proven very effective in the past to incorporate the children, school personnel and parents together in this type of effort,” Vandenberg said in his report. “It must also be made clear that pedestrians at a crosswalk have the responsibility to make sure that the traffic is clear when they step off the curb and attempt to cross a street,” he concluded. 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