The new crosswalk placed in front of Hutton Elementary School and the Gable Housing Society has provided children a safer method of crossing across the busy highway.
“We have an interesting situation where we have the original crosswalk east down the road with a crossing guard but the majority of children were taking the shortcut on the undesignated crosswalk for many years,” said School District 51 Superintendent Michael Strukoff.
City Coun. Michael Wirischagin agreed. “I think it’s an absolutely positive thing that it could be completed in a timely fashion before the school session began.”
As full-day Kindergarten starts up again this year, the number of children crossing the intersection at the same time has increased.
Including the families at the Gable Housing Society, the safety of children becomes paramount.
“It gives children the ability to cross the road safely at that location, and from the school standpoint, it’s just great that those kids can now safely cross the road there,” said Wirischagin.
Strukoff added, “We’re very pleased that the City of Grand Forks and the Ministry of Highways have worked together to put a proper ramp there and crossway.”
Last spring there was a reduction in the speed limit from 70 km to 50 km that has helped drivers slow down near the school zone.
Along with the speed zone change, the crossing guard was also moved from the previous location to the new designated route for the safety of the children crossing.
“The speed limit change wasn’t a result of the crosswalk but it has helped,” stated Strukoff.
“We just want to encourage all parents and children to use the designated crosswalk. We tried to make it more convenient for them, along with moving the crossing guard there.”
Citizens on Patrol will also be using its newly acquired speed board around the elementary school to warn drivers to slow down near school zones.
