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Traffic nightmare impacting school drop-off, pick-up at this Philadelphia school

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Published  September 16, 2024 6:35pm EDT
Education
FOX 29 Philadelphia

School pickup/drop off traffic nightmare at MaST Community Charter School

FOX 29's Jennifer Joyce heads to Somerton to get the scoop on a traffic nightmare causing major issues at MaST Community Charter School during pick-up and drop-off hours.

PHILADELPHIA - Some people call it a traffic nightmare outside of Mast Community Charter School in Somerton during school drop-off and pick-up times.  

School buses, SEPTA buses, shuttle buses and parents all add to the congestion. 

FOX 29 cameras captured cars and buses squeezing, swerving and crawling along an always-busy Byberry Road to pick up students.

"It’s always a mess! You can’t turn in," said one passing motorist.

"Everything bottlenecks right here," said Wendell Burton, who was at the school picking up his grandson.

"It’s terrible," declared another driver.

While cameras were rolling, FOX 29 caught some drivers hopping curbs to escape bumper-to-bumper school pick-up lines. 

Mr. Burton was stuck in one of those lines until it was his pick-up time.

"They’re not gonna let me in until about 2:50 p.m., so I got at least another 30-minute wait." he said.

Members of the school community and even local businesses say the school traffic outside of Mast Community Charter School has been bad for years, but some believe it’s getting worse. 

The School District of Philadelphia’s Parent Flat Rate Program offers families $300 per month if they choose to drive their child to school and opt out of bus service. 

Mast told FOX 29 that 508 cars are signed up for the program at their school.  It’s a number that continues to increase. 

Mast Community Charter School CEO John Swoyer issued the following statement saying, in part: 

"With more cars coming into our parking lot, we do our best with the property space we have available. We have tried several times to reach out to our neighbor, the US Post Office, to see if some of their property could be used in assisting with the congestion. We’ve also been in contact with the streets department to work through timing of the light and other factors."

We reached out to the School District of Philadelphia for a statement on the increased participation in the Parent Flat Rate Program and we’re waiting to hear back.