The start of school may have created more than first-day jitters for some Los Altos residents living near Loyola School who say increasing school traffic and parking problems have created a safety hazard in their neighborhood.
Neighbors crowded the Los Altos School District's board- room during a regular board meeting Aug. 16 to ask the district for some immediate solutions.
Residents living along Berry Avenue and Alvina Court described the traffic as a "horrendous situation," citing bumper-to-bumper traffic blocking their driveways, double-parked cars, and drivers making illegal U turns.
"We're literally trapped in our homes," said one neighbor who lives on Alvina Court, referring to the parade of cars blocking her driveway before and after school.
Another resident said she believes that the double-parked cars along Alvina make it virtually impossible for an ambulance or fire truck to get through.
In a district survey last spring, 86 percent of students attending Loyola said they commuted to school by car. Only 12 percent said they walked or biked to school.
Superintendent Marge Gratiot said the traffic along Berry "really is a problem.
"Traffic has increased throughout the city, making it less safe for children to walk to school," she said.
In a letter to the board, Gratiot said between 1990 and the start of this school year, enrollment at Loyola has increased from 403 students to 580 students. With the state's class-size reduction program, the number of classes themselves has almost doubled over the same time period from 14 classrooms to 27 classrooms, she said.
"Each (class) comes with a teacher and sometimes an aide or two, increasing the demand on parking," Gratiot said.
In addition to the school, the campus houses Children's House, a child care facility for students whose parents request it. Gratiot said the staff has increased over recent years as the population has grown.
Neighbors suggested that the district restructure the school's current drop-off zone, expand its parking lot, post a police car near the school or use a van to shuttle students to and from school from a designated drop-off point located away from the school.
Gratiot said the district has no control over issues such as the placement of "no parking" signs, speed bumps or speed-limit enforcement on city streets. She said the district could increase the size and configuration of the parking lot to improve traffic patterns.
Board president Kristine Salmon said the school district will work with the city to "get this solved."