As of the end of the 2022 - 2023 school year, lunchtime crossing guards will be removed from all current locations, with the exception of the Odessa crossing.

The funds available from the elimination of the lunchtime crossing guards will be redistributed to increase both the crossing guard wage and the time present in the morning and afternoon. This change will be communicated to the OPP and the local school boards for circulation to the affected parents.

Between April and May, staff conducted a warrant study at eight crossings in the area to determine the current needs Based on the results, none of the of the locations warranted crossing guards during the lunch hour shift. This finding was consistent with the observations of staff and information provided by the crossing guards.

The study also showed one location at Kildare Avenue and Manitou Crescent West that does not warrant a crossing guard. Since the implementation of the school crossing guard service in the township, the method of transporting students by local school boards has changed considerably, and now relies more on the use of buses.

Due to the high volume of high school students crossing Main Street in Odessa at lunchtime, the lunchtime school crossing guard service will remain at Odessa and be reassessed following the installation of a pedestrian crossover and lights currently scheduled for installation next year.

Staff will complete additional studies in the fall to determine if the Kildare Avenue and Manitou Crescent West location can be eliminated, and review if additional crossing guards are needed in other areas. If the decision is confirmed to remove the crossing guard from Kildare Avenue and Manitou Crescent West, the pavement markings and signage will need to be removed as well.

Manager of Public Works Alex Scott explained there won't be any further changes until council makes their decision.

"If any additional locations are identified, or should there be others for additional elimination, we'd definitely come back to council for that." said Scott.

The studies were completed in accordance with the Ontario Traffic Control (OTC) School Crossing Guard Guide, and the Ontario Traffic Manual (OTM) to ensure that each school crossing complied with industry best practices and traffic control regulations.

Although there are many factors that determine when a crossing guard is warranted, the guide states that a crossing guard is not required until a minimum of 40 students who are in grades junior kindergarten through Grade 5, are observed crossing a roadway. This minimum threshold was not met at any of the crossings, but seven of them warrant a crossing guard based on other factors, such as high vehicular movement, number of student crossings, and proximity to schools.

The OTC School Crossing Guard Guide provides the following recommendations should it be determined that a crossing guard will no longer provide services:

• The school should be notified of the decision to remove any crossing guard positions and their location
• Parents should receive a notice from the school with a package to review with their children about safe crossing practices and what to look out for when crossing the road
• The abrupt stoppage of services should be discouraged during the school year
• The removal of a crossing guard should be planned for the beginning of a new school year
• A reminder notice should be provided by the school outlining the change to the crossing guard program and should be provided before the year starts

At the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year, the public works division at Loyalist Township became responsible for the provision of school crossing guards. The division is responsible for adherence to the Highway Traffic Act. Due to the retirement of one crossing guard, there has been a vacant crossing guard position since February 2023. Staff have been actively recruiting for the position but have not been successful in filling the position to date. Public works staff have been filling in for the vacant position.

Crossing guards currently provide their service three times per day; One half hour in the morning, one hour covering the school lunch hour, and one half hour in the afternoon. This is a total of two hours per day. Removal of the lunch hour shift would reduce the daily service hours of the crossing guards to one hour.

Although not covered within the warrant study, the morning and afternoon shift start times next year will begin fifteen minutes earlier than the current shift times. This is partly due to feedback heard from crossing guard staff and parents who felt that the crossings should be guarded earlier in the morning and afternoon as some students go to school and leave school before the guard is present. The result of the increase in service hours will provide the crossing guards with one and a half hours per day.

Coun. Jake Ennis noted his support for this change.

"Fifteen minutes earlier in the morning and afternoon; I've heard back from parents that that increase in coverage, a little bit earlier, would be helpful," said Ennis.

To ensure that staff's daily rate of pay is not affected by any changes to the service, the hourly rate of pay will be increased to the amount required to provide the equivalent daily pay they would have received by working two hours per day at their current rate of pay. Reducing the number of shifts from three to two at the same daily rate may have the added benefit of increasing the number of people willing to apply to work as a crossing guard.

Hear the story below;