ALVA, Fla — When traffic backs up at Alva School pickup, some parents pull through the church next door’s lawn to wait off North River Road - and you can see all the damage it's caused - part of the lawn has been turned into a large sand pit.
So the church put up barriers to stop it, but with all the traffic on the two-lane road, having cars back up there is dangerous.
Fox 4's Alva Community Correspondent Austin Schargorodski works in the area daily so people there know him. That’s why he got a call about what’s happening there and the push for solutions.
Watch what parents and the church pastor told Austin about the traffic problem:
At pickup time cars line down North River Road with nowhere else to wait. You could even see some even block a full lane, while a truck swerved into the grass just to get around.
Paige Adams says every time she waits here, she worries. "I've been hit almost a few times by cars coming through here. It's very scary. I've seen many people almost hit by dump trucks that are coming through here,” said Adams.
Pastor Frank Jones runs the church next to the school and says this has been an issue for over a decade.
"The road that you're seeing here. This gravel dirt area here, was created by parents of students picking up and dropping off, and it's gotten worse,” Jones explained.
He shared a photo - it showed that at one point it got so bad cars were getting stuck in the sand until a neighbor brought out a skid steer to flatten it.
He says the school has asked parents to stay off the lawn, but it hasn't worked. And his parking lot's taking a hit too.
"You can see they make this turn here, and every time we've filled this in, it's just drive over it and continue on,” said Jones
But for Jones, this isn't just about damage. "When they have to park in the road, it's dangerous, you know? And dump trucks, motorcycles, and tractor trailers have just increased so much in our area on this two lane road that it makes it dangerous between 1:30 and 2:30. It's kinda crazy,” he said.
Jones tells me he's been talking with the school district about the problem — and now, there's movement.
A Lee County School District spokesperson said a temporary road on school property is expected to be built in April to help with backups. Plus, long-term plans include two permanent roads that could hold up to 300 cars.
"The district has been so accommodating and gracious,” said Jones. “I am just so thrilled to hear they're making the effort to make us whole and help us."
