Parents being 'advised' to park legally outside Renmore school

kinetic

cats.life wrote: »

where have you being living? what rock let me know , this happends anywhere in ireland.

I dont understand your comment?

cats.life

kinetic wrote: »

I dont understand your comment?

clueless:rolleyes:

kinetic

im clueless? go on explain

thesandeman

WooHoo! A cat fight.

*gets popcorn*

kinetic

ha

Iwannahurl

mikemac1 wrote: »

Could the school organize the "walking bus"?
If there's maybe five families with ten kids beside you like Castlepark for example, then take turns and one parent walks them all to school
Have seen it in operation elsewhere and tends to work pretty well.
And if it's raining as it often does in Galway then who cares, a bit of rain and some exercise won't do any harm

An Taisce run the Green Schools programme, which includes a 'walking bus'. It's operating successfully in a number of schools, AFAIK. They make the exercise more than just a walk by including activities and games as they go along. Far better for children's development than sitting in the back of a car with a DS or whatever...

snubbleste wrote: »

Does anyone know what promoted this complaint about this school in particular?
I mean it's located in a mostly residential area.
Yet there are other locations like Scoil Fhursa, St Patricks NS, Coláiste na Coiribe, Presentation NS Newcastle Rd, Mercy NS Francis St, with heavy through traffic that have the exact same problem and are arguably far more dangerous.
Maybe it's because Scoil Chaitríona has a car-park next to it and others do not.

Leadership from the school principal was a key factor, I believe.

Caliden

Cregmore school should take a page out of Renmore's book and do this.

Even after a truck careered into 15+ cars, due to a collision with a car where the driver had reduced visibility because of other cars not using the car park, they are still parking up opposite the front gates of the school only allowing for 1 car to pass.

When will they learn?

SillyMcCarthy

ronnie3585 wrote: »

I cannot understand the leniency shown to school runners and mass goers. They are easily the worst offenders when it comes to illegal parking. I walk past two schools on the way to work every morning, the sheer ignorance of the parking is incredible.

And don't forget to include the GAA supporter who also
think they can park where they bloody like!

Iwannahurl

Caliden wrote: »

Cregmore school should take a page out of Renmore's book and do this.

Even after a truck careered into 15+ cars, due to a collision with a car where the driver had reduced visibility because of other cars not using the car park, they are still parking up opposite the front gates of the school only allowing for 1 car to pass.

When will they learn?

Any reliable published reports mentioning that specific aspect of the Cregmore incident?

Nobody learns, especially the enforcers perhaps. This kind of thing has been going on for literally decades. Another poster mentioned the GAA. When AGS did a one-off blitz on illegal parking during a match at Pearse Stadium some time ago, GAA fans were outraged because they had been parking the same way for twenty years and never got a ticket.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056316012

Maybe this is why the school principal opted for the letter as the initial approach. If they had ticketed instead the poor hard-pressed motorists would have been in a state of extreme shock. Enforcement not being the done thing, y'see...

Mrs OBumble

mikemac1 wrote: »

Could the school organize the "walking bus"?

Of course they could.

But why the hell should they have to? Literacy rates being what they are in this country, teachers time should be spend on teaching and learning, not on organising sideline activities to stop parents breaking the law.


:mad:

WesternNight

JustMary wrote: »

Of course they could.

But why the hell should they have to? Literacy rates being what they are in this country, teachers time should be spend on teaching and learning, not on organising sideline activities to stop parents breaking the law.


:mad:

Actually, a 'walking bus' would be a great way of incorporating some incidental learning into kids' days..

Wouldn't have to be an either or kind of thing. It'd be a win win.

(sh*tty Galway weather notwithstanding)

Iwannahurl

They could learn about the weather!

mikemac1

JustMary wrote: »

Of course they could.

But why the hell should they have to? Literacy rates being what they are in this country, teachers time should be spend on teaching and learning, not on organising sideline activities to stop parents breaking the law.


:mad:

Parents council can sort it out

Nobody is asking teachers to do the walking bus, that's for parents to work on

cats.life

Caliden wrote: »

Cregmore school should take a page out of Renmore's book and do this.

Even after a truck careered into 15+ cars, due to a collision with a car where the driver had reduced visibility because of other cars not using the car park, they are still parking up opposite the front gates of the school only allowing for 1 car to pass.

When will they learn?

they made a new ''drive through'' as in drive in carpark and let of the poor little darlings who cant walk , carpark is of the road so its not that bad , its bad when collecting at 2.30 when ''mummy'' is back again, but the principal does writ a note to parents who abuse the parking now and again but they dont give a rats ass, i park early as in go early to get a good space so i wont be parked upon when last minute 'mums' come..

Iwannahurl

mikemac1 wrote: »

Parents council can sort it out

Nobody is asking teachers to do the walking bus, that's for parents to work on

I think parents just give consent for their kids to participate in the walking bus. An Taisce's Green Schools Travel initiative does the organising.

http://www.greenschoolsnews.org/resources/GSGalway%20City%20Newsletter%20.pdf

It's obviously helpful to have the principal, teachers, board of management and parents council on board, of course.

Unfortunately, given the fact that illegal/obnoxious parking is the norm at many schools (and just about everywhere else), and that cars dominate to an extreme extent, it would not be surprising if a school's parents council included members who were not averse to inappropriate motoring behaviour. If this were the case, a plan to tackle the problem mightn't be forthcoming. Indeed, illegal/obnoxious parking mightn't even be seen as a problem at all...

kabakuyu

Iwannahurl wrote: »

I think parents just give consent for their kids to participate in the walking bus. An Taisce's Green Schools Travel initiative does the organising.

http://www.greenschoolsnews.org/resources/GSGalway%20City%20Newsletter%20.pdf

It's obviously helpful to have the principal, teachers, board of management and parents council on board, of course.

Unfortunately, given the fact that illegal/obnoxious parking is the norm at many schools (and just about everywhere else), and that cars dominate to an extreme extent, it would not be surprising if a school's parents council included members who were not averse to inappropriate motoring behaviour. If this were the case, a plan to tackle the problem mightn't be forthcoming. Indeed, illegal/obnoxious parking mightn't even be seen as a problem at all...

Maybe you should hear from the said parents council before making assumptions and generalisations, just for balance of course;)

Iwannahurl

I didn't mention any particular parents council.

I'm merely making the point that illegal/obnoxious parking, around schools and in many other Galway City locations, is so commonplace as to be completely normal. That's a generalisation, but it's self-evidently true, IMO. Enforcement is also minimal to non-existent.

Therefore, it's well within the bounds of probability that parents councils include members who don't see such behaviour as being much of a problem. If it is seen as a problem, and if parents councils were addressing this issue on a regular basis, then Scoil Caithriona mightn't be so newsworthy as one of the few schools (maybe the only school?) to tackle this anti-social behaviour head-on.

kabakuyu

Like I said, you are still making assumptions about parents councils without having had any input or statement from any parents council.Your post is pure conjecture and speculation and should be treated as such by any readers of this thread.;)

Iwannahurl

Do you know of any school parents council in Galway City that has taken a stand on this issue?

Incidentally, I know of at least two schools where the parents council/board of management has chosen to ignore and/or defend obnoxious/illegal parking that has been drawn to their attention repeatedly.

I've been addressing this issue long enough to know that Scoil Caithriona is the exception rather than the rule in terms of proactively dealing with this endemic problem.

kabakuyu

Iwannahurl wrote: »

Do you know of any school parents council in Galway City that has taken a stand on this issue?

Incidentally, I know of at least two schools where the parents council/board of management has chosen to ignore and/or defend obnoxious/illegal parking that has been drawn to their attention repeatedly.

I've been addressing this issue long enough to know that Scoil Caithriona is the exception rather than the rule in terms of proactively dealing with this endemic problem.

If you know about two schools maybe you should name and shame, but until any school advocates/condones illegal parking in a statement or declares it as part of school policy your assertions are merely conjecture and I was only pointing out that fact.

Iwannahurl

kabakuyu wrote: »

If you know about two schools maybe you should name and shame, but until any school advocates/condones illegal parking in a statement or declares it as part of school policy your assertions are merely conjecture and I was only pointing out that fact.

I won't name the schools, as it would not be fair and would probably be highly contentious. I am much more concerned about the general issue, which is widespread and endemic, than in the failures or otherwise of specific schools and their principals/boards of management.

However, the thought occurs that what I could do is look at all the schools' websites and see whether they explicitly mention road safety and parking control in their policies. Just had a quick look at two, and they have nothing along those lines AFAICS. I would be delighted to hear of any school, other than Scoil Caithriona, that has grasped this nettle.

Until a school in Galway City explicitly deals with illegal/dangerous/obnoxious parking in its written policies then it is reasonable to infer that such behaviour by parents is not considered serious enough to warrant a policy response from the school.

This is why Scoil Caithriona is to be commended, in my view. Going public in this manner, and engaging proactively with the enforcers and local representatives, sends a strong message. Not as strong as rigorous enforcement, but it's a great start.

kabakuyu

Iwannahurl wrote: »

So you think I pontificate in an overly zealous manner, yet you want me to "name and shame" individual schools in this thread? Bit of a disconnect there, what? I won't name the schools, BTW.

Until a school in Galway City explicitly deals with illegal/dangerous/obnoxious parking in its written policies then it is reasonable to infer that such behaviour by parents is not considered serious enough to warrant a policy response from the school.

This is why Scoil Caithriona is to be commended, in my view. Going public in this manner, and engaging proactively with the enforcers and local representatives, sends a strong message. Not as strong as rigorous enforcement, but it's a great start.

I have deleted and apoligised for the comments, it was uncalled for:o.BTW maybe you should not have mentioned the two schools in your post if it cannot be verified.

Mrs OBumble

Iwannahurl wrote: »

Until a school in Galway City explicitly deals with illegal/dangerous/obnoxious parking in its written policies then it is reasonable to infer that such behaviour by parents is not considered serious enough to warrant a policy response from the school.

I have a feeling that the new-enough St John the Apostle in Knocknacarra has written policies about where pickups / dropoffs happen - suspect they might have been part of the planning permission for the site.

TBH, a parents council is, AFAIK, a voluntary group of parents. We have laws to deal with parking, and paid staff (community wardens, AGS) to enforce them. It should not be up to volunteer-citizens to be doing anything more than modelling good practice themselves.

factual lies

I have kids going to renmore school, I drive them every morning even though I only live 15 mins walk from the school. I do this as I go to work straight after. Do people really think that walking the kids to school, walk back home and then drive to work is an option ? Madness.

Iwannahurl

JustMary wrote: »

I have a feeling that the new-enough St John the Apostle in Knocknacarra has written policies about where pickups / dropoffs happen - suspect they might have been part of the planning permission for the site.

TBH, a parents council is, AFAIK, a voluntary group of parents. We have laws to deal with parking, and paid staff (community wardens, AGS) to enforce them. It should not be up to volunteer-citizens to be doing anything more than modelling good practice themselves.

My starting point was that the means to deal with the dangerous/illegal parking, as reported in relation to Scoil Caithriona, already existed in the form of Fixed Charge Notices, penalty points etc. I've mellowed a bit since, and I can see a lot of value in the school management taking a more proactive leadership role.

This is also a community issue, as well as a law enforcement one. There are other aspects that cannot be addressed by law enforcement. That's where community efforts such as parents councils and the Green Schools programme can play a valuable role.

St John the Apostle in Knocknacarra is a good example of a school which has clear and easily accessed policies on a range of issues. They have a policy on pedestrian access, which relates primarily to pupils coming to school from the Whiteoaks side. Coming by car on that side is not permitted, and AFAIK that is just a school policy rather than a bye-law. But it seems to work insofar as there is no school-related traffic on the Whiteoaks side. Additionally, there is a new footpath being constructed and a ?zebra crossing has been installed on the Clybaun Road. The other access road, past the Altan apartments, is a different story. I have no idea what the "planners" were trying to achieve there, and I don't know if the school has much to say about it either.

Iwannahurl

factual lies wrote: »

I have kids going to renmore school, I drive them every morning even though I only live 15 mins walk from the school. I do this as I go to work straight after. Do people really think that walking the kids to school, walk back home and then drive to work is an option ? Madness.

Driving and parking are different things. It ought to be possible to drive to the school and still park legally and with consideration for others, especially with the safety of children in mind.

In the case of Scoil Caithriona there is a car park immediately adjacent. Ample car parking facilitates driving. Parking legally and safely facilitates other road users, including those who travel to school by other means.

galwaycyclist

factual lies wrote: »

I have kids going to renmore school, I drive them every morning even though I only live 15 mins walk from the school. I do this as I go to work straight after. Do people really think that walking the kids to school, walk back home and then drive to work is an option ? Madness.

Given, that we as a nation, are facing an epidemic of obesity and related conditions such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and so on. It might be considered madness to not use the obvious opportunity of a 15 minute walk to school. Or possibly a short drive and then a 10 minute walk.

There are also educational implications. I have a cousin who recently retired from working as a National Teacher. She tells me that in the days when children walked or cycled to school, they came into class ready to sit down and learn something. Their modern car-borne counterparts apparently find it very hard to settle down.

People who insist on driving their children door to door are arguably not just endangering the children who walk they are arguably also contributing to a disruptive classroom environment.

barryd09

I know it will never happen but if the city council & its parking wardens with the support of the gardai were to tackle the school parking & also take a quick wander through salthill at ANY time they would collect enough fines to take us out of recession.

There must be 15-25 cars parked illegally at any moment in salthill.

Sponge Bob

If they blitz one misparking shower the word spreads fast.

Iwannahurl

barryd09 wrote: »

I know it will never happen but if the city council & its parking wardens with the support of the gardai were to tackle the school parking & also take a quick wander through salthill at ANY time they would collect enough fines to take us out of recession.

There must be 15-25 cars parked illegally at any moment in salthill.

Salthill is an obnoxious/illegal parkers playground. 15-25 is a massive underestimate, I'd say.

Unfortunately, I think the Council is now in a bit of a Catch 22/vicious cycle in this regard.

Due to retirement, and other factors possibly, the number of Traffic/Community wardens has decreased. The number of parking fines has also also decreased by about a third I believe*, not necessarily because there are fewer people offending. This reduces the Council's revenue, which in turn reduces their ability to enforce the bye-laws (assuming the recruitment embargo doesn't prevent them from replacing Wardens).

The Council also recently reduced parking fees, so the overall result is probably significantly less revenue from parking management generally.

At this stage it must be the ratepayers that are carrying the biggest financial burden of keeping the Council funded, or is that wide of the mark?






*Number of Fixed Charge Notices issued by the Council is actually down by about 40% on 2010/2011 levels. Not all fines issued are for illegal parking either: around a third are for Motor Tax offences.