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Guadalupe prepares traffic and pedestrian plans as new middle-school campus opens in August
Summary
Council and staff discussed pedestrian safety, Caltrans jurisdiction over key intersections, and short-term measures — including possible volunteers, crossing guards, police visibility and bus queuing — ahead of a mid-August school opening for seventh- and eighth-graders.
City public-safety and public-works staff told the Guadalupe City Council on June 24 that the opening of a new school campus in mid-August will require immediate, short-term traffic and pedestrian measures because key crossings are under Caltrans control.
Chief Cash said the principal safety risks center on students crossing Highway 166 at intersections the city does not control. “As everyone knows, we don't own those, intersections. That's Caltrans,” Cash said. Staff and school officials have met and drafted a plan that includes possible flashing beacons, queuing for drop-off, a secondary bus location, and coordination with the school district to manage arrivals and departures.
Staff warned grants such as California’s Safe Routes to School typically fund longer-term infrastructure like sidewalks and bike lanes and are unlikely to be available before the school opens. Cash said the city is exploring temporary measures — including using volunteers, moving existing crossing-guard resources, increased police visibility or using a staging/bus pick-up location — and will ask the school and developer to help where feasible.
Council members and staff discussed practical constraints at two specific crossings identified in the meeting: Obispo and Maine, and another crossing at or near Highway 166. Staff said one crossing location currently has only a flashing beacon and that Caltrans’ approval would be required for some permanent treatments.
Staff also noted an adjacent early-learning center (a “learning center”) near the new campus increases complexity for arrival and dismissal because the two programs could create overlapping drop-off activity. City staff said they have a written plan but no immediate funding to implement larger changes and that short-term measures will rely on coordination and possible redeployment of personnel.
No formal action was taken; staff said they will continue planning, seek possible grant funding for longer-term infrastructure, and return to council with specific recommendations and any funding requests.
