Working with the City of Culver City and the Culver City Police Department, Culver City Unified School District is implementing new traffic patterns on Elenda Street in front of the Culver City High School and Middle School complex.

“We know pick-up and drop-off times in this area can be busy and chaotic,” said Superintendent Dave LaRose. “Our primary concern is student safety, and we believe the new traffic patterns will encourage drivers and pedestrians to co-exist more safely. We encourage parents and others driving through the area during morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up times to pay special attention to the new patterns.”

Effective immediately, drivers heading south on both Garfield and Franklin can only turn right when reaching Elenda. Parents wishing to drop off their students on the west side of Elenda or in the Farragut/CCMS parking lot must enter the area at Braddock or any street north of Braddock.

On Wednesday, May 20, the city will paint new “zebra stripe” crosswalks at the intersection of Garfield and Elenda, and security personnel will be directing vehicle and pedestrian traffic at both that intersection and Elenda and Farragut. Parents wishing to drop their students off a block or two away from the area should be confident that these monitors can help their students navigate the short walk to school.

“We are hopeful that drivers will soon get used to the new patterns, figure out what works best for them and adhere to the restrictions that are in place to enhance student safety,” LaRose said.

• Pedestrians should cross at marked crosswalks only
• Parents should refrain from dropping off students in the middle of the road
• Drivers should pull to the curb to drop off passengers
• Parents should adhere to all painted curb restrictions to avoid being cited by CCPD
• Drivers should not stop in the crosswalk to allow passengers to unload

CCUSD security personnel directing traffic are doing so at the appointment of the Culver City Police Chief, and violation of their directions is a violation of the law for which drivers can be cited. CCPD officers will be out in force on a regular basis to enforce traffic violations.

Parents and other drivers in the area are encouraged to take a little extra time to navigate the area until they get used to the new traffic patterns.

“We are grateful for the support and strong partnership we share with the city and with CCPD,” said LaRose, who added that CCUSD personnel directing traffic have undergone extensive training through the police department. “We commend our CCUSD security team for all the hard work they have invested in their extensive training to make sure things go smoothly and safely.”