Two traffic officials have been hired by the district to provide greater safety at intersections at Chapel Hill High School during arrival and dismissal times of the school day.
Crystal Martinez-Ramos and Andre Caldwell were both hired as traffic control personnel in late October.
Martinez-Ramos has been with the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools district for 14 years directing traffic. Previously she directed traffic at Phillips Middle School.
She began as a traffic director when she volunteered as a parent to help direct traffic during her son’s athletic events.
“After volunteering to direct traffic at my son’s cross-country meets, someone told me to go get certified. I was then certified the next day,” Martinez-Ramos said.
Caldwell has been directing traffic for four months and gained interest in the job because of his father.
“My dad was a traffic official for eight years, and I originally got into this because of him. I actually signed up to be his replacement,” Caldwell said.
Social studies teacher Bill Melega has served as an unofficial traffic guard since the hiring of the two officials, and said Caldwell and Martinez-Ramos fulfill necessary and important needs.
“All of the students who get driven to school come at about 8:30. When you add school buses, city buses, kids walking and students trying to park all into one space, then a jam is going to happen,” Melega said.
Many parents seem to be thankful for the hires.
“I feel better now because I know the kids crossing the road are safer with traffic officials,” Jill Berman, the mother of a sophomore student, said.
Some seniors are also appreciative of the new traffic guards.
“I have noticed improvement: the traffic is more organized, and it’s easier to get into the parking lot. Also, now there’s less defensive driving because the traffic guard tells people when and where to go, so they don’t second-guess,” senior Kaleb Ridlon said.
Other student drivers said they haven’t noticed an improvement.
“I think traffic has gotten more clogged up. The traffic lady always is pressing the crosswalk button for the walkers, but that means the light is always red for the drivers,” senior Skylar Naderer said.
Principal Charles Blanchard, though, stressed that the hirings were done with student safety in mind.
“We have seen improvement in the safety of our pedestrian traffic crossing the major intersections in the morning and afternoons,” he said.
