Some students start their day with their favorite drink, while others start their day by hitting the snooze button repeatedly. However, there’s one shared component that all Benilde-St. Margaret’s students start their day with. Whether their drive to school is five minutes or forty-five, everyone struggles with the same problem: traffic.
With Minnetonka Boulevard’s closure, along with the lane closures on Highway 100, the traffic is monstrous. Many BSM students who come to school from Highway 100 North complain about the constant traffic. This traffic makes getting to school much harder than it has been in the past. “I would say it takes me 15 minutes to get here; it used to take [me] seven minutes,” senior Ava Swanson said.
BSM students were asked if they had any ideas to help combat the problem of traffic and gridlock getting in and out of school. One idea was to release students by grade. First, the seniors would leave. Then, juniors, sophomores, and so on. The kids who drive with siblings would be dismissed at the same time. So, at the end of the day, we could have a homeroom or a free period. Meaning no junior high kids would be missing class. “This would make things less frustrating [and help students get in and out in] less time,” senior Jack Kershner said.
Some students are especially upset with the new sixth grade coming into the school because they bring even more traffic than there has already been. “I think that because of the new sixth graders, there’s a lot more traffic, and it’s honestly really annoying,” Swanson said.
Another idea that was discussed by seniors was parents not being allowed to park in the main entrance rows and staying only in the carpool lane. It is very frustrating for seniors when parents fill the rows where they park, meaning they cannot get out of their parking spots until a car further up moves or someone is nice enough to reverse and let them in. The carpool lane is the lane that wraps around the baseball field into the drop zone at the front doors. If all parents stayed in the carpool lane, this would make it possible for seniors to get out of the parking lot without all of the extra time. “I think it is a genius idea. I think it would be very effective…it would really help out with all the traffic jams leaving, because it is really hard. It takes me a long time to get home when all those parents are caught up in the line blocking me from getting out,” senior Andie Wojnicz said.
Students’ commutes to school are just getting longer and longer. Senior Jack Kershner says it takes him at least five more minutes to get here than normally, which is significant due to how close he lives. Junior MJ Whitaker said she is stuck in traffic for a lot of her time going to school. This problem will not get any better if BSM doesn’t make a change. This traffic affects everyone who commutes to BSM. “I get grumpy when I get to school because I’ve almost been late a couple of times. I also have to wake up earlier because I have to leave earlier,” Swanson said.