We all have those mornings where you’re really feeling like you’re going to have a good day. You wake up early, shower, do your hair, brush your teeth, put on your favorite outfit, and get in the car, excited to start your day off strong – only to encounter a long and slow line that never seems to end. You sit in your car staring at the clock: 7:54, 7:56, 7:58, 7:59, and boom, just like that you’re late to your first class. But not because you woke up late, not because there was an accident on the highway, not because you stopped to get a strawberry acai refresher at Starbucks. No, you did everything right, but the traffic and parking system at KO had other plans.
This frustration is shared among the KO student body. But what causes the backup, what changes is the administration planning to make, and how can you avoid this situation? Read on to see what goes on behind the scenes and explore the factors that cause this issue.
For drivers, the line is the only part of the commute they can see. Cars approach campus from different directions, and students arriving at the same time may be heading to different places once they enter. Some drivers need to park, while others are dropping someone off before continuing their own day. A few minutes spent waiting on a nearby road can blend into a few more minutes spent moving through campus, making it hard to tell where the delay began. Looking closely at the route cars take each morning may reveal whether there is one main source of backup or several smaller ones.
Over 500 kids in total attend Kingswood Oxford; that includes the Upper School and the Middle School, all rushing to get to class at the same time. Think about how many cars, on average, enter the parking lot between the time of 7:30-8:00 a.m. And on top of that, upperclassmen are trying to find a place to park.
Dean of Students Kata Baker said the beginning of the school year is usually the hardest for traffic. In September, families are returning to their routines, and new students and drivers are learning how long the trip takes. “What we have experienced this September is not unlike what we’ve experienced in the past,” she said. The difference, in her view, is that there appears to be more drivers this year.
Ms. Baker emphasized that she has not researched the cause of that instance. One possibility she raised is the growth of the Middle School, whose students generally arrive in cars driven by someone else. She suggested that even 20 or 30 additional drop-off vehicles could make congestion more noticeable.
Ms. Baker said traffic typically peaks and then improves as people adjust their schedules. Some families may decide to leave earlier after discovering their first estimate did not give them enough time. That adjustment is easier for some people than others. Ms. Baker noted that some families travel as far as 45 minutes to an hour; this makes an earlier departure a significant change to an already early morning.
Some students approach KO through the center, while others travel along Trout Brook Drive. A wait on either route can begin before a driver reaches the parking lot. Once cars approach campus, the traffic lights affect how quickly they can leave or enter.
Ms. Baker said the signal is normally set to give priority to traffic traveling along Trout Brook Drive. School officials have asked whether the timing can instead give more priority to vehicles entering and leaving campus between 7:30 and 8:15 a.m. Changing the light would involve a trade-off: drivers traveling north or south on Trout Brook Drive might wait longer.
Ms. Baker said it was her understanding that the town had agreed to the request, but she was not involved in the conversation with the town. There is a difference between a requested adjustment, an approved adjustment, and one that is already operating.
The light is one example of why the morning backup cannot be understood by looking at the parking lot alone. If cars cannot enter or exit campus quickly at the intersection, a delay there can affect vehicles elsewhere in the route. At the same time, the presence of a line near the light does not prove it is the only cause. To determine its role, it would help to compare how long cars wait at the intersection with the time they spend moving through campus.
For newer student drivers, parking while other cars are waiting behind them can be especially stressful. “We’ve definitely had students who have come in, and they’re worried about getting to class on time,” Ms. Baker said. “They’re new drivers who are not as comfortable parking, and they’re not trying to get into a spot when there’s a line of traffic behind them.” Their experience shows that arriving at the parking lot entrance is not always the end of the wait.
The traffic problem is also especially difficult to solve because changing the system will often result in more complications. Ms. Baker said administrators have discussed different ways to improve the flow of cars, including whether another area of campus could be used for drop-off. The Upper School circle was one possible solution. While this solution may seem like the perfect fix to the average student, the school has to consider the effect increased traffic in the center of campus will have on the surrounding neighborhood and neighbors that KO has worked hard to build healthy relationships with. “Every good idea has implications,” Ms. Baker said, “so we have to keep that in mind.”
Because of this, the school has focused on improving traffic flow rather than simply creating another place for cars to wait in line. Ms. Baker also discussed providing families with clearer guidance about where and when to enter campus.
The congestion is not just limited to roads surrounding campus and the line to get in. Once drivers make it into the parking lot, they have to navigate a mixture of student drivers, parents dropping off students, and cars looking for parking lot spaces.
“The increase of inexperienced and not skilled student drivers has changed the experience of the parking lot, ” senior Sierra Wells said. As more sophomores and juniors begin to get their licenses, the parking lot has to accommodate more new drivers along with parents dropping off their students.
“For beginner drivers, even tasks as small as finding a parking spot can be a challenge,” Sierra continued. New drivers searching for a spot or taking extra time to park may only delay them a couple seconds, but when several cars are doing the same thing, those small delays add up.
Another factor is timing. The problem is not simply how many cars come to campus but how many arrive within the same few minutes. If cars are all reaching the entrance at once, the line grows quickly. Similarly, once those cars enter the parking lot, the line decreases just as quickly.
This explains why arriving only a few minutes earlier can make such a huge difference. A driver who reaches campus at 7:40 a.m. will encounter a very different situation from someone who arrives at 7:55 a.m., even though they are only 15 minutes apart. Ms. Baker said this pattern is a part of why traffic tends to decrease as September continues and families adjust to which departure time works for them.
So, for all of the families out there trying to avoid the morning rush, the administration presented a few easy fixes, hoping everyone can find one that fits their situation. First, when possible, leaving a few minutes earlier will help families avoid the rush time of around 7:50 a.m.
Other solutions? “If you can do it, carpool,” Ms. Baker encouraged. This is a great option for those who have the opportunity to.
For students being dropped off, Ms. Baker suggests having parents drop you off at the bottom of the hill. This is not only a way to avoid all the congestion, which makes the trip shorter; it will also speed up the flow of the whole parking lot.
For now, there is no single solution to KO’s morning traffic. With hundreds of students arriving within the same few minutes, every driver, drop-off, and traffic light plays a big part. Now that you understand the complexities of a situation that may have once seemed simple, you should be able to attack the parking lot from a different point of view.
