ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – In a little less than 48 hours, thousands of St. Johns County students will head back to their classrooms, and many of them will be walking to and from their bus stops.
The county's crossing guards are another set of eyes and ears for the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office, and Monday they attended a special training session to reinforce the students' safety.
The men and women who work as crossing guards have the responsibility of making sure St. Johns County students arrive to school and home safely every day.
Widespread urban growth and increased traffic in St. Johns County makes their jobs all the more complicated and essential.
“We tell them how the traffic lights work and how pedestrian's signals work and how to create gaps in traffic,” said Cpl. Tim Robertson with the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office traffic division. “Crossing guards are not there to direct traffic. They are there to create gaps in traffic to get the students safely across the street, so we teach them proper techniques.”
The crossing guards were trained on how to instruct students verbally, and at the same time control drivers with their hands.
Drivers might notice something different this year at the busiest intersections. Guards are being instructed to blow their whistles more often, as part of new statewide standards to promote safety.
“A change to the requirement this year for the school crossing guard is that they must blow their whistle when they are walking out to the intersection,” Robertson said. “In the years past, they used it to warn motorists that they are encroaching upon the crosswalk. This year, the state is asking them to blow the whistle every time they step out into the intersection.”
The crossing guard training course is mandated by the Florida Department of Transportation, which also conducts on-site evaluations throughout the school year.
The school bells ring in St. Johns County on Wednesday morning, so drivers are being urged to pay attention to new traffic patterns and take it slow.
