ROBERTSDALE — When the new Robertsdale Elementary School opened in August, teachers and administrators relished the airy new classrooms, the bright halls, and that new-building smell. Sure there was a lot of work left to do, but the end was in sight. It was time to celebrate.

Well, maybe not.

Traffic at the new school had become a nightmare.

“When school started, there were a lot more people dropping their children off,” explained Robertsdale Police Chief Brad Kendrick.

That led to some big traffic tie-ups around the new school.

“Traffic down College and Wilters was all backed up,” said Kendrick.

Worse, buses and cars were jockeying for position in front of the school. adding to the backup. And high school students were getting caught up in the mess. Wilters Street provides the main access to Highway 59 from the Elsanor area. According to Kendrick, there is “no good” alternative for those drivers at this time.

“It was really causing people to get behind, and people were really getting mad at the crossing guard,” said Kendrick.

It’s not as if school officials didn’t warn parents.

“As in past years, traffic will be a challenge during the first several weeks of school.  Cars, buses, as well other vehicles, will back-up at the intersection of Wilters Street and College Street. You may want to take an alternate route to avoid the congestion at the four-way stop. For those of you who drive your children to school, you may consider carpooling with neighbors.,” said Principal Charles Downey in a message on the school’s Web site.

To relieve the congestion, Kendrick (his wife, Samantha, is a second-grade teacher at the school) and other officers at the Robertsdale Police Department met with Downey and came up with a plan that sends private vehicles picking up or dropping off students down White Street, where they then loop into the school’s lot and then pick up students under a covered walkway. A member of the school’s staff is on hand to make sure traffic moves along and that students stay safe.

The new scheme has drawn praise from school officials.

“Our top goal with traffic flow is always safety,” said Terry Wilhite, director of communications for the Baldwin County Public Schools in an e-mail.

Wilhite realizes the new pattern might not be speedy for some parents.

“Sometimes the interest of safety does slow down the car line, but we try to keep an orderly flow with traffic and we rely heavily on our law enforcement community to help us because they are the traffic experts,” said Wilhite. “We greatly appreciate the Robertsdale Police Department's diligence in helping us sort through the traffic challenges at hand. Also, we thank our parents who are willing to adjust. They've told us regularly they know what we are doing is in the interest of safety of their children, our students”

Happy parents, safe students, relieved law enforcement. A great picture, no?

Well, maybe not. In order to make room for all the traffic, White Avenue becomes “one way” from 7:15 to 8:15 a.m. and at 2 to 4 p.m. weekdays. That means residents of the Oak Hillcrest subdivision, which normally gets in and out through White Avenue enter or exit the subdivision normally.

“I went out myself for three days and counted (the traffic from the subdivision),” said Kendrick. “There were only three or four vehicles.”

Fortunately, there is a solution that Kendrick says will work for most.

“Residents who have to leave or get in during the times White Avenue is ‘one way’ can access College Avenue by taking the road through the vocational school,” Kendrick said.

“It does involve cutting though the vocational school parking lot,” but Kendrick noted that the students there are older, and most students at the school are bused in, making it unlikely that there will be a problem.

“It’s only a few hours,” said Kendrick

It’s also a temporary situation.

Kendrick added that as the demolition of the old Robertsdale Elementary buildings continue, a new bus route would be established, further separating cars and buses.