As we wrap up our second week of school, it’s so nice to see the many families and students walking to school and home each day. With many parents and caregivers still working from home, we encourage you all to keep up this practice of walking to and from school each day. We know that fall is here and that the weather is changing, so let’s pack our umbrellas, throw a warm shirt in our student’s bags and make sure they have what they the need to keep WALKING to school!
This week you may have noticed that we launched our new traffic and safety signage at all our major Drop Zone and Kindergarten Zones. We are hoping that this will be a reminder to please adhere to the guidelines below in the event that you do decide to drive to school. Please help us make sure that each one of our students has access to a safe arrival and departure by adhering to the following:
Do Not Park in the Drop Zones, Kindergarten Zone and Bus Zone
The south side of St. Clements and the north side of Castlefield, spanning the entire length of the school property all the way to Avenue Road (i.e., the school zone), are NO PARKING zones from 8:30 am to 9:30 am.
Why is it absolutely imperative that the community refrain from parking in the Drop Zones, Kindergarten Zones and Bus Zones? Because they create congestion. St. Clements and Castlefield are not designed to have four lanes of cars. If we can keep these areas of St. Clements and Castlefield clear of parked cars, traffic moves efficiently, drivers are not tempted to perform illegal u-turns, honk, swear and create a spectacle. Our students are more visible on the sidewalks and safer around the school.
Do Not Try to Park as Close as You Can to the School
We understand that everyone has their own reason for wanting to park as close as they can to the school for drop off, but you can’t – it’s as simple as that. If you must drive, park away from the School Zone and walk a block. It’s not as terrible as you might think, and it might actually save you time when you are leaving.
Do Not Perform Illegal U-turns in the School Zone
Performing illegal U-turns is dangerous and one of the leading causes of accidents in school zones. Plan your trip and approach the school in the direction you want to be heading after drop off, considering traffic lights and turning restrictions. If you park half a block away, you won’t need to perform an illegal U-turn in the school zone.
Do Not Honk if You Feel Frustrated
Again, park away from the school zone and avoid the congestion.
Do Not Block Our Neighbours’ Driveways
Treat others the way you want to be treated. You would not want someone parking in front of your driveway, so please don’t do it to our neighbours.
Do Park Away From the School Zone
Park away from the school zone and walk a minute or two to get to school, or if you can, leave the car at home and find other ways to travel to school in the morning.
Do Use the Drop Zones on St. Clements and Castlefield
Pull up and let your kids out. We encourage those parents who need to drive to use our Drop Zone. We have two different locations: Castlefield Ave. (for those travelling westbound) and St. Clements Ave. (for those travelling eastbound). If you are using the COVID screening closest to Avenue Road, on Castlefield, please pull up all the way to the school to let your kids out safely.
The APA is currently reviewing the need for Drop Zone/Traffic Monitor volunteers.
Do Follow the Traffic Signs and Speed Limits Around the School Zone
There are lots of signs and they are there for a reason.
We would like to acknowledge that our new Traffic and Safety signage was generously sponsored by Oliver’s Labels. Oliver’s Labels create fun personalized labels for all our student’s needs. We all know what the Lost and Found looks like at the end of each year. Let’s reduce the lost items by labelling our students’ items!
Oliver’s Labels loved that we are working hard on encouraging Allenby families to walk to school, so they provided our very own unique Allenby link to order custom-labels for your needs. All orders placed through this link will provide a 20% give back to the APA, which will be used to fund initiatives for Allenby.
Please click here to place your order and support our school.
Thank you for helping us create a safe and congestion-free school year!
The APA Team