This article is meant to address parking lot traffic issues and questions from parents and students.

For the 2015-2016 school year, Lake Central has added enough parking spaces so that all seniors and juniors who filled out the Naviance survey during the summer can have a parking space. This has eliminated the traditional parking lot lottery method. Because more students get to drive to school, the parking lot traffic and wait times have increased. The school has gone from having 300 to 700 student cars, along with parents and buses, trying to enter and exit the school lot this year. However, the lot has not gained new entrances or exits. Therefore, it will take more time to enter and exit the campus. Students need to realize that the added parking is to their benefit, so dealing with a little traffic before and after school is just a minor setback.

In order to combat these effects, there are a few things that students and parents can do: arriving earlier to allow more time to navigate the parking lot, having patience, taking the bus and being a defensive driver. In order to increase safety, it is important to not block exits and entrances – especially the left turn coming onto campus blocking the outgoing lanes. Please follow the directions of the crossing guards directing traffic and obey the traffic flow rules. Students should always use the crosswalks when walking through the parking lot to enter and exit the school. Also, drivers should consider the environmental conditions when coming to school. In the case of snow, rain or other weather conditions, please allow extra time to get to school and into the lot.

The stoplights are synced to the school’s favor, helping get cars in and out faster when entering and exiting. Power outages and other technical difficulties can affect this sequence. The school cannot fix the sequence; the company controlling the lights must reset it for them. Please be patient if the sequence takes a few days to reset in the case of a power outage.

Lastly, parking stickers need to be placed on the outside of the back window on students’ cars, or the office will have to assume that it is a counterfeit. Please place these passes correctly as soon as possible.

The school’s administration and staff are doing everything they can to make the parking lot as efficient and safe as possible. If there are any questions about traffic flow or parent pick-up and drop-off locations, please refer to the “Campus Overview” link, found on Lake Central’s main website.