Neighbor News
Messmer High School's Impact on "Driving Miss Daisy"!
The traffic flow around Messmer High School is causing problems.
As of late I have been chauffeuring my wife to work and have noticed a consistent and troubling problem. The most convenient and efficient way for us to commute is to take Capitol Drive West to Green Bay Road and access I-43 South. She works at 26th and Wisconsin and other than normal rush hour traffic problems, it is a fairly easy commute. However, 742 West Capitol is the most frustrating and dangerous portion of the morning commute.
Messmer Catholic High School is located at that location. School buses and vehicles use the north side of Capitol to drop students or pick them up. Normally this wouldn’t be such a problem, but from 7:15 AM to 7:45 AM, west bound Capital is particularly heavily traveled by commuters and a great deal of congestion is the result. It would be one thing if the problem was just congestion, but it is a dangerous intersection and approximately 150 yards beyond. Students are departing vehicles, crossing the street, etc. But that isn’t the real danger and frustration, it is the vehicles that are trying to cross lanes and pull up to the curb to drop their students. If they can’t get all the way to the curb, then they stop in the middle land, stopping traffic and drop their students. Afterward, those that made it to the curb are then pulling into traffic.
Complaints to MPD District 5 was met with an unsatisfactory response. They posted an officer preventing the traffic problem, but that only lasted two or three days and conditions returned as they were before.
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I have looked at the situation and I don’t understand why Messmer doesn’t require drop offs to be done either behind the building on West Messmer St. or on the east side of the gymnasium on North Seventh. West Messmer would be the safest drop off for the students. I still think the school buses need to be able drop on Capitol, but not private vehicles.
I don’t know how many others are frustrated with the situation, but when I’m “Driving Miss Daisy”, it certainly raises my blood pressure.