Manatee County school district, local governments work on school traffic issues as they arise

BRADENTON -- Each year, more and more Manatee County students are driven to school each day, according to the Manatee County School District.

Managing the resulting traffic issues requires collaboration between the school district and local government agencies. The additional cars on the road slow traffic and can block roadways as parents navigate student dropoffs and pickups.

"We try and discourage offsite parking as much as we can. Once we get past our school property, it's outside of our control," said Amy Anderson, school district facilities, sites and planning manager.

About 40 percent of students ride a school district bus each day. The number of students who walk or bike to school is shrinking each year, Anderson reported, and the number of students being transported in private vehicles is going up.

"We are working on these issues at our schools," Anderson said.

Each school has a designated loop where parents are expected to wait in their cars to pick up students, but even with those areas, cars can sometimes spill out on the street, or parents may choose to park in a different area to pick up their children.

With help from the local government and law enforcement, the district is able to handle the issues on a case-by-case basis, Anderson said.

One of the most recent issues to pop up is at King Middle School. The school district has asked the Manatee County Commission to install no parking signs along 75th Street Northwest between Eighth and Ninth avenues northwest. On Wednesday, school officials and John Chappie, the county commissioner who represents King, will meet with concerned residents at the school.

A public hearing and vote by the county commission is scheduled April 12.

Even as the cases are handled individually, county commission Chairwoman Vanessa Baugh again brought forth the idea of a joint meeting between the commission and the school board to discuss issues such as transportation and school capacity.

"When we all get together, it is something we'll probably discuss again," Baugh said.

Meghin Delaney, education reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7081. Follow her on Twitter @MeghinDelaney.

This story was originally published April 5, 2016 at 11:11 PM with the headline "Manatee County school district, local governments work on school traffic issues as they arise ."