editorial final draft

The gate closing on the top parking lot at Eastview High School is a controversial matter, to say the least. In January 2010 the administration decided to close the gate that blocks a road coming from the bottom parking lot to the top parking lot from 7:00-7:30 am and 2:00-2:45 pm every school day. Their reasoning behind it was that it will create more flow in the traffic everyday. Between 7:00-7:30 and 2:00-2:45 is the busiest time for the roads around Eastview High School due to students coming and going from school. There is absolutely no reason to close the gate and it does no good for anybody. As my friend Hunter said, “think of it like this, if there are two holes in a bucket as opposed to one hole, the water will drain faster with two holes then with one hole, so why plug up the one hole”? He is referring to the traffic as water and the gate as the hole. In the morning now, the line for the light to turn left into the school parking lot extends about two blocks back to the light at the street before it with the line for the top lot for parents extending just about ten cars long. I understand where the administration is coming from in a sense, when the gate is open in the morning students wait in the line for the top parking lot and then turn right to go down into the bottom lot, causing constant stopping and slowing down for cars behind. But having the gate closed, the traffic is so uneven for both turns that it makes no sense to “close up one of the holes”. The administration needs to reconsider their decision to close the gate and consider the students coming to school, and not just try to please the parents of the students. Having the gate closed and making the line longer for the left turn lane will just cause accidents and fender benders, I have seen many close calls since the gate has been closed. Opening the gate back up is the only smart decision for the administration to make.