Alberta Motor Association student patrollers return to province’s crosswalks

The Alberta Motor Association (AMA) has resumed its program of training Grade 5 students as safety patrollers in crosswalks across the province. This initiative, which has a solid history of ensuring children's safety, has been in operation for over 85 years without any serious injuries or fatalities involving a patroller on duty. Allison Purcell, the school safety patrol coordinator for the AMA, highlighted this impressive record.

For Charlotte Loewen and Briar Maret, two first-time patrollers, the return of the program has instilled confidence in their school environment. Loewen, a Grade 5 student at West Coulee Ridge Elementary School in Lethbridge, mentioned that crossing by herself was previously not allowed, and the patrolling role will help instill a sense of safety for her peers.

Maret, also attending the same school, added that the patrolling experience provides her with leadership skills and demonstrates to younger students how to behave when crossing a crosswalk.

The success of safety patrolling relies on the collective effort of the community. Purcell emphasized the importance of drivers paying attention to the commands given by patrollers and stopping at the designated signals. She also advised drivers to observe the stop signs when approaching a crosswalk. Sgt. Tony Ramotowski of the Lethbridge Police Service's traffic response unit further stressed the responsibility of all road users.

He urged pedestrians to follow safety precautions such as looking both ways, using crosswalks, turning on lights in school zones, and making eye contact with drivers to ensure they see them.

In Lethbridge, all playground and school zones have been harmonized, meaning they share a consistent speed limit of 30 km/h from 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. daily. This uniformity aims to further enhance road safety for everyone involved. The AMA continues to collaborate with local police to enforce these rules, with an additional focus on automated enforcement and conventional methods to ensure the safety of students as they return to classrooms.