Chandigarh: In a bid to enhance the safety of schoolchildren and ease traffic snarls outside educational institutions, the Chandigarh administration has directed all schools to ensure that students are picked up and dropped off on the campus premises instead of on public roads. Schools have also been asked to actively promote car-pooling among parents to reduce the number of vehicles arriving at school gates.The advisory, issued by the district magistrate/chairman of the district road safety committee, said boarding and alighting of students on roads outside schools during peak hours leads to traffic congestion, obstructs vehicular movement and exposes children to safety risks.The administration observed that although the Chandigarh Building Rules, 2017 mandate every educational institution to earmark a designated parking area, several schools have allegedly converted these spaces for other purposes, including sports courts, swimming pools and office space. As a result, students are forced to board and alight from vehicles on public roads.To address the issue, schools have been directed to restore designated parking areas to their original purpose and ensure that the entire pick-up and drop-off process takes place within the campus. Institutions have also been advised to regulate the movement of vehicles inside school premises and, wherever necessary, stagger entry and exit timings to ensure smoother traffic flow.The advisory urges schools to encourage car-pooling among students and parents to reduce traffic volume inside campuses and on surrounding roads. According to the administration, car-pooling would improve student safety by reducing the number of vehicles, lower fuel consumption and vehicular emissions, ease congestion during peak hours and reduce commuting costs for parents.For implementation, schools have been asked to identify students living in the same neighbourhood, facilitate the formation of car-pooling groups and sensitise parents through circulars and parent-teacher meetings.The district road safety committee has directed all educational institutions to implement the measures at the earliest and submit an action taken report detailing compliance with the advisory.
