Keeping students safe on way to and from school
Police adopt 'Street Smart is Street Safe' program
BY AMANDA BELING Staff Writer

AMANDA BELING A crossing guard helps students at Frank Antonides School cross the street safely.

WEST LONG BRANCH - In an effort to ensure the safety of schoolchildren walking to school and the crossing guards who watch over them, the township's police department has implemented a new program called "Street Smart is Street Safe."

"Thirty years ago, about half the children walked to school, but today only about 15 percent walk, and we just want to make sure that those children are walking in the safest environment as possible," said police Capt. Lawrence Mihlon.

He noted that statewide there's been an estimated 65 percent increase in accidents involving crossing guards over the past 10 years.

The League of Municipalities in conjunction with the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police (NJSACOP), Public Entity Risk Management Administration and the Municipal Excess Liability Joint Insurance Fund (MEL), sent a packet of information on the program to Chief of Police Arthur N. Cosentino and Mayor Janet Tucci, which they then turned over to police Capt. Lawrence Mihlon.

"We just started this about a month ago. It's been a joint effort between our governing body and our police department" said Cosentino.

The program features a new training video for school crossing guards, which was produced by MEL and NJSACOP.

"It's an interesting video. Real crossing guards are interviewed about the procedures of their job, so it makes more of an impact than just reading it in a book," said Mihlon, who noted that the video focuses on a new safety risk: the illegal use of cell phones by drivers, which wasn't an issue years ago.

"I notice that cell phone use by drivers is more in the morning on the way to work as well as later in the day on their way home. When drivers are on the phone, they're not completely focused on the road, and therefore it can be very dangerous for not only the children, but for the crossing guards," said Mihlon.

According to Mihlon there is a 95 percent chance of survival if a car going 20 mph hits a pedestrian, whereas a car going 40 mph only leaves a pedestrian with a 10 percent chance of survival.

"The speed limit on Locust Avenue is 35 mph, but in the school zone it goes down to 25 mph when children are going to school in the morning and when they're let out in the afternoon," said Cosentino.

"We actually deploy speed sentry signs in town, where we can monitor and get an analysis of what the common speed is on the school roads," added Mihlon.

The video also stresses the fact that crossing guards communicate verbally and nonverbally with the children so they know when it is safe to cross the street and if there is any danger to be aware of.

"They [crossing guards] can't rely on that method of communication with drivers, but they can still use it in conjunction with their whistles to get their attention," said Mihlon.

He noted that a byproduct of this training was evaluating the crossing guards' equipment.

"In the video it says that crossing guards in various areas of New Jersey are uniformed from head to toe, but in West Long Branch we have them wear their hats and whistles, and new bright green colored vests, which are designed for yearround weather," he said.

Cosentino noted that the vests are actually a high-visibility yellow-green color.

"The old orange-red vests used to blend in too much with the colors of car tail lights and things of that nature," he said.

Another aspect of the program is to encourage good health among the crossing guards.

"Vision and hearing standards are required to be examined because those are vital to the job," said Mihlon.

Each crossing guard must have good peripheral vision, depth perception, color vision and visual acuity.

"If they wear glasses or contacts, it must be a current prescription," he said.

Cosentino said that the police department would like to supply the crossing guards with some type of communication device so that if they have a problem, they can contact the police department or one another more quickly.

In an effort to support the safety effort, a Citizen Advisory Committee for Public Safety will be formed, according to Cosentino.

"I believe the mayor is working on getting a group together which will probably include myself and somebody from the public works, the superintendent of schools, civilian volunteers, the municipal engineer and our borough clerk," he said.