SPREYDON SCHOOL PICK-UP LANE NOW REQUIRES TWO HI-VIS PARENTS, A WHISTLE AND A CEASEFIRE
The PTA has appointed an unofficial envoy. She drives a Kluger.
The 3pm car park at a Spreydon primary school has been quietly reorganised into what one parent called "a small UN mission, but with more Anchor milk". The trouble is the eight parks closest to the gate.
Things came to a head on Tuesday when two mothers, both arriving at 2:52pm, tried to take the same park from opposite directions. Neither reversed. A third parent, Hineata Whaanga, got out of her Kluger and walked between them holding a clipboard she didn't need.
"I'm not on the PTA," Whaanga told The Daily Yarn. "I just got sick of it. One of them had her indicator on since Barrington Street. The other had a Trade Me sticker. I asked them both to go around the block. They did."
Another parent, Marcus Bridger, said the car park had been tense since a nor'wester last term sent a scooter into a Hilux and no-one would say whose kid owned it. "Now we've got lanes. Unofficially. Hineata drew them in her head. We all sort of know."
The principal, asked whether the layout was being reviewed, said the matter was "with the Board" and that parents were "encouraged to consider the kiss-and-drop". The kiss-and-drop, parents confirmed, does not really exist.
STATEMENT FROM COUNCIL
Christchurch City Council is aware of community concerns regarding traffic flow near several Spreydon schools at pick-up time.
It is acknowledged that informal arrangements have been observed at the location in question. Council wishes to remind residents that on-site school car parks are the responsibility of the relevant Board of Trustees, and are not a matter for Council at this time.
A review of surrounding street markings has been added to the forward works programme and will be considered in due course, subject to budget and the outcome of the wider Spreydon Active Transport Scoping Exercise, which is ongoing.
Residents are thanked for their patience. Further updates will be provided as they become available.
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Reader Letters
MumOf3_Spreydon
Leave the Kluger at home!
tired_in_riccarton
The scooter was mine. Stink one, I know.
Trev_Hornby
Honestly, Hineata deserves a medal for trying to bring some sense to that chaos. The last time it was this bad was during my son's first year there, when you had to half-empty your boot in the morning to secure a spot by the afternoon. But what really grinds my gears is how the Council always passes the buck. It's like watching a game of bureaucratic hot potato! Maybe they should just paint the lines instead of drawing up plans.
Garry (Halswell)
You can't expect kids to be picked up like parcels just because you've got lines imagined in your head.
scooter_sara
The council again shirking responsibility.
wayne1987
Mate, if everyone just had the courtesy to wait their turn, none of this would happen. It's all about patience and not being a muppet.
couchgremlin
A ceasefire? Lol.
Sandra McKenzie
Actually, the 'kiss-and-drop' is a valid concept if executed correctly, which it clearly isn't here. Perhaps some formal guidance from the Board would help.
Barry (Addington)
@Sandra no one cares about your 'formal guidance'. It's not rocket science, it's school pickup without the apocalypse.