REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL ACTION
DATE: 01/19/2022
TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Public Works Department
SUBJECT:
Title
Update on the crossing guard study for Garretson Elementary School at the Garretson Avenue and Rancho Road intersection.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Staff is providing an administrative report and update to the City Council on the school crossing guard study at Garretson Elementary School located at Garretson Avenue and Rancho Road. Four other crossing guard locations were requested to be studied at Cesar Chavez Elementary, Susan B. Anthony Elementary, Orange Elementary and Vicentia Elementary schools. Only two locations at Garretson Elementary and Susan B. Anthony Elementary met warrants for a crossing guard.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Recommended action
That the City Council receive an update on the crossing guard study at various locations throughout the City.
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BACKGROUND:
The Public Works Traffic Engineering Division, Corona Police Department (Corona PD), and Corona-Norco Unified School District (CNSUD) coordinate efforts to provide safe school pedestrian crossings City-wide. Several of these crossings have a high vehicular or pedestrian volume that benefit from additional safety measures such as a crossing guard. Traffic Engineering staff utilize the California Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (CAMUTCD), which provides guidelines for when a crossing guard is warranted near a school intersection. The CAMUTCD provide thresholds for vehicular and pedestrian volumes that when met, recommend the consideration of an adult crossing guard.
A list of school crossing locations is shared annually with Public Works staff for evaluation. The list is compiled by Corona PD and CNUSD staff. These locations are typically analyzed by the Traffic Division in the fall or spring when school is in session and traffic has normalized from the holidays and summer break. Once the studies are completed, the results are shared with Corona PD and CNUSD. Since Corona PD and CNUSD share the cost to fund the crossing guard services, crossing guard positions are funded as part of the next fiscal year’s budget process, allowing sufficient time to allocate funding for the upcoming fiscal year. CNUSD is responsible for the hiring of crossing guards.
ANALYSIS:
After receiving requests from parents, CNUSD, and Corona PD to evaluate new sites, staff performed crossing guard studies at five locations. The schools included in the study were Cesar Chavez Elementary, Susan B. Anthony Elementary, Orange Elementary, Garretson Elementary, and Vicentia Elementary. The studies follow the CAMUTCD guidelines and recommendations for warranting a crossing guard. Three locations did not meet the requirements needed to fulfill the request. Two locations, which included Garretson Elementary School, met the standards for warranting a crossing guard. The results of the study are included in the table below.
After the results were shared with Corona PD and CNUSD, both parties determined to add a crossing guard at the warranted locations after returning from winter break, on January 10, 2022, rather than wait until the next school year.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
The cost of a cost guard is shared on 50% split between the CNUSD and the City. Adequate funds are included in the Fiscal Year 2022 Budget for the additional crossing guards.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS:
This action is exempt pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the Guidelines for the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), which states that a project is exempt from CEQA if the activity is covered by the common sense exemption that CEQA applies only to projects that have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA. The requested actions are for performing a crossing guard study, and there is no possibility that performing the study will have a significant effect on the environment. Therefore, no environmental analysis is required.
PREPARED BY: ROSALVA N. URENO, P.E., T.E., CITY TRAFFIC ENGINEER
REVIEWED BY: SAVAT KHAMPHOU, PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR