Ferndale School District and the City of Ferndale found themselves looking for a solution after learning Washington Street, currently closed for construction, would not be reopened by the first day of school as originally hoped.
Ferndale School District buses have depended on Washington Street to line up on Shuksan Street as well as for their routes in and out of the high school campus. Parents and students also have relied on Washington Street as a route for driving and walking to not only the high school but also to nearby Vista Middle School and Skyline Elementary.
So what to do with all that traffic? That was the task taken on by staff from the City of Ferndale and Ferndale School District. The decision was recently announced and is somewhat cumbersome as it includes specifics for morning and afternoon as well as for pedestrians, drop-offs and buses.
The short version is the existing detour route around the construction on Washington Street, Vista Drive and 3rd Avenue, will continue to be relied upon. Plus, a segment of Malloy Avenue from the roundabout to Seamount Drive will be temporarily converted to a one-way road heading northbound. Drivers should leave early to allow for delays getting in and out of the area, especially during the first few days.
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Click for more informationAccording to city staff, the conversion of Malloy Avenue to a one-way road will occur around 6:30am on Wednesday, September 7th, (the first day of school) as public works employees set up the necessary traffic control barriers and signage around the high school.
Ferndale High School traffic heading in and out of the campus will encounter the following revisions and restrictions beginning September 7th.
At all times, pedestrians and bicyclists heading to and from the high school campus will not be allowed in the construction area on Washington Street and will need to follow the detour route along 3rd Avenue and Vista Drive.
Arriving
Students heading to the high school will need to enter the roundabout on Vista Drive. From there they will exit onto Malloy Avenue and use the appropriate driveway for their parking lot. Traffic heading south on Malloy Avenue will need to move over to Vista Drive since the last block before the high school will be one-way northbound only.
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Click for more informationDrivers southbound on Malloy Avenue are advised to get onto Vista Drive via Thornton Street or before since it will become much more difficult as they get closer to the high school.
Parents and others dropping-off students will head to the roundabout, exit onto Malloy Avenue and enter the driveway north of the tennis courts (aka Memorial Drive and Golden Eagle Drive). Student drop-off should be occur in front of the flag pole and cafeteria and then the vehicle will exit via Shuksan Street back to the roundabout.
Departing
Students leaving campus will do so via each parking lot’s driveway leading to Malloy Avenue (except via Shuksan Street) and head north through the one-way segment.
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Parents and others picking-up students will head to the roundabout, exit onto Malloy Avenue and enter the driveway north of the tennis courts (aka Memorial Drive). Student pick-up should occur in front of the auditorium and gymnasium then the vehicle will exit the campus via Memorial Drive back to Malloy Avenue.
Restrictions and revisions planned are intended to not only aid in handling the traffic volume but also to enable the fleet of school buses to enter and exit the transportation parking lot as well as pick up and drop off students at the high school.
A request for information from the school district about whether these changes may impact any bus routes as to pick up locations and times has been made. This article will be updated with that information when available.
Click for more informationClick for more informationSchool and city officials plan to meet and review the effectiveness of these changes shortly after the first day of school and make any needed improvements.
Update 8/31/16 2:30pm
When asked if these revisions will impact bus routes (pickup/drop-off locations or times), Ferndale School District Assistant Superintendent for Business & Support Services Mark Deebach responded,
The routes themselves won’t change. The big change to buses is that in the morning the buses will go to the middle schools first instead of Ferndale High. The high school students will then board their PM transfer bus for the remaining portion of the trip down to the high school.
