Follow Up: A Closer Look At Traffic Enforcement At Schools

FRAMINGHAM, MA- Between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. might be the busiest time for traffic in Framingham. Commuters are trying to make it to work on time, school buses are taking students to school and parents are driving their kids in. The combination of morning rush and traffic frustration make for a dangerous situation, particularly in school zones.

Most parents or residents who live near any of Framingham's 15 public schools have witnessed the dangerous driving that, for many, has become a morning routine. After increased complaints from crossing guards and parents, Framingham police have dedicated a traffic patrol officer to patrol the hot bed areas near schools.

Officer Ken Blass, Framingham's only traffic patrol officer, has been with the Traffic and Safety division for about 5 years and in the police department for 27 years. Due to cuts around the department, the Traffic and Safety Division has shrunk from three officers to just one.

No more than a minute into his patrol on Elm Street, one of several main roads with schools, Blass pulled over two cars driving 20 miles over the speed limit. Cameron Middle School and Stapleton Elementary School sit less than a mile down the road from one another and open around the same times, adding to congestion on the road.

Crossing guard Linda Ferguson is posted near the intersection where Cameron's exit, Elm Street and Michael Road meet. Ferguson has been posted at Cameron Middle school for seven years and spent 15 years as a crossing guard. She says this year has been the worst for traffic and speeding.

"I don't know what it is, but cars are just speeding past," she said, adding that it's not just commuters on their way to work but parents dropping off students who are guilty. "I've seen cars barrel through, blow past the school bus stop signs, even while the buses are honking. They just don't care," Ferguson said.

Blass said he's seen his fair share of speeding parents while on patrol. Just the other day, while on patrol on Brook Street, he put his lights on to stop a van that was going twice the school zone limit. "I had my lights and siren on and they didn't pull over until they got to the school and dropped their kid off. It was ridiculous," Blass said.

This years uptick in traffic and school zone speeding could be related to the stripping of the Traffic and Safety Division. Assistant Safety Officer Keith Strange said the majority of complaints that come to the department are about traffic. "This is a very busy office- we're doing the best we can," Strange said.

While there are 13 crossing guards on duty throughout the city, they don't have the ticketing authority that police officers do. Ferguson says when cars see officers like Blass outside the schools, they slow down and stay on their best behavior.

"You can see a difference in how the cars move after we've been here for a bit, they slow down and that's what we want, just for everyone to slow down," Blass said. He'll be out on the school patrol for as long as the department sees fit, conducting random enforcement at school zones across the city. As a parent himself, Blass hopes the patrols will keep drivers on their toes with the safety of the children in mind first.

Photo Credit: Samantha Mercado/Patch