Parents, local officials and school staff agree, cars driving by Alamo Elementary School when school lets out need to slow down.

At Tuesday night's Alamo Municipal Advisory Council meeting, the push to slow that traffic down continued, and councilmembers were updated about a recent effort to keep kids safe while crossing the street.

Students and parents packed a June MAC meeting to demand more effective alerts than the current “advance flashers” that activate during pickup and dropoff hours. 

Traffic engineer Jerry Fahy said that since then, the county has updated nearby signage and trimmed vegetation to make the flashers more visible.

With parents still asking for more, Fahy said a multi-agency effort is underway to address speeding near the crosswalk that students use.  Fahy added that a stop sign or light is unfeasible with the amount of traffic on Livorna Road, an “arterial roadway” that he said sees more than 10,000 motorists a day.

California Highway Patrol was present on the roadway to issue citations and slow traffic on the first day of school, according to Principal Stanley Hitomi. 

Field representative Jennifer Quallick said CHP officers also discussed a program to focus a patrol on the area at the last meeting of the Police Services Advisory Committee.

Fahy also said a portable 4-foot yield sign was placed in the middle of the crosswalk, but has since been removed because it was being struck by cars. 

Hitomi said the suggestion of crossing guards is moot, because vehicles began striking the yield sign “within the first few hours that it was there.”  He said he moved it because, “it became a traffic hazard.”

“When you talk about crossing guards, they might get hit every day,” Hitomi said on Tuesday. 

At the meeting, Hitomi also presented a recent survey of 98 families at Alamo Elementary School about traffic safety around the crosswalk. 

In the survey, more than 91 percent said the crosswalk was unsafe, 98 percent said safety could be improved, 61 percent said they use it regularly and 58 percent said they have experienced a “near miss” at the crosswalk. 

Hitomi also said recent police presence has slowed traffic but not enough to ensure students’ safety.

Councilmembers asked Fahy to continue county efforts to slow motorists, including restriping the crosswalk and investigating an “area of benefits” fund to be used to create a more permanent safety device. 

Councilmembers Steve Mick and Nancy Dommes said options could include a pedestrian bridge over the roadway.

Mike Gibson, of the Alamo Improvement Association, said the “area of benefits” fund is geared toward a list of specific projects that have remained static since it was established more than a decade ago. 

Fahy and Gibson said requesting use of such funds for unlisted projects is a complicated process that would likely take more than a few months.

In the meantime, reestablishing a MAC working group on roads would “keep this important issue at the forefront,” said Chair David Bowlby, adding that Livorna Road safety would be revisited on future MAC agendas.

Also at the meeting:

Councilmembers Bid Fond Farewell to Field Rep

With last month’s finalization of county redistricting, councilmembers will see new staff, a new supervisor and bid farewell to current Field Representative Jennifer Quallick, who served the MAC as a county liaison for two years. 

At Quallick’s last meeting as field representative on Tuesday, councilmembers offered fond comments on their time with her.

“When you first came here you were fresh from the private sector,” Vice Chair Michael McDonald said.  “Seeing you grow into your position has been great.”

Chair David Bowlby said Quallick had been the MAC’s steadfast “point person” and “advisor.”

Councilmember Nancy Dommes said, “you’ve done everything with grace and a level of professionalism that I hope we continue.”

Councilmembers offered Quallick a framed pastoral painting as a departing gift.

“I will hang it proudly,” she said.

The redistricting moves MAC oversight from Supervisors Mary Piepho to Gayle Uilkema, who attended the Tuesday meeting to begin the transition.

Beginning in December, MAC Meetings to be Hosted at Alamo Shopping Plaza

Councilmembers voted to try a new meeting space in Alamo Shopping Plaza that was offered by the Alamo Chamber of Commerce.

Councilmember Nancy Dommes said the new space could draw more public interest in a more central location.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity to put out a sandwich sign in front of Safeway and even advertise a major issue, whether its astroturf in the dog park or anything else,” she said.  “We want to try to get the public involved and [Hap Magee Ranch Park] is a little far away.”

AIA member Mike Gibson said that, “for appearances, it’s better for the MAC to meet in a public place.”

Vice Chair Michael McDonald said he was against the move when it was first proposed but changed his opinion “after looking at the space.”

“I think it’s worth a try,” McDonald said.

Councilmembers voted to begin meeting there in December and reassess the location after six months.