New safety patrollers trained at West Coulee Station Elementary School

On Wednesday morning, students at West Coulee Station Elementary School had an opportunity to learn what it means to become a safety patroller.
Allison Purcell, an Alberta Motor Association Community Engagement Coordinator, spoke to students about the importance of the safety patroller program.
“We're very excited to have a school safety patrol starting here at West Coulee Station,” said Purcell. “It's important to ensure that we have safe crossings, and we get pedestrians safely to and from school. School safety patrollers have been on the crosswalk for over 85 years in our province. It is a key safety aspect to keeping school zones safe, and to have West Coulee Station on board to ensure that our crossings are safe for our pedestrians is absolutely a top priority.”
AMA trained 30 patrollers on Wednesday, which represents a key starting point in the process.
“Now that they're trained, they're able to go out there and cross pedestrians safely,” said Purcell.
Safety is truly a team effort, and it’s a key component to ensure the program works effectively and efficiently.
“We work together closely with our community partners, including the Lethbridge Police Service, as well as The City of Lethbridge, who works closely with us to ensure that we have proper signage,” said Purcell. “If speeding is an issue or distracting driving is an issue, we rely on our community partners to help us with those issues and concerns as well. Community partnerships are really important to ensure the AMA school safety patrol program is a top priority in our schools.”
According to Purcell, students who take on the role of safety patroller require a special set of skills, and also display a high level of commitment.
“Last week, I came and did a recruitment with all of the students and chatted with them about what it takes to be a patroller,” she said. “To be a patroller, you need to be responsible, you need to be leaders and you need to persevere. Our patrollers are out there whether it's sunny, whether it's raining or snowing, the cold weather - they're out there on patrol. They have to do this job from September to June. So, to have that excitement and still be willing to sign up, these kids are ready to do this job. They want to be leaders, they want to help their community, and this is one great way for them to be able to do that.”
Schools that wish to set up a patrol can reach out to Purcell for details.
“If they want to sign up for school safety patrol, they can give me a call, send me an email and sign up,” she said. “We can come and take a look at their crossing. We are doing the safe routes to school at all of the elementary schools in Lethbridge, so working together with that team, we're looking at opportunities that exist.”
Purcell added there are many ways people can make a difference and contribute to safety around Division schools.
“We also are offering some pilot opportunities, whether it's adult crossing educator or walking school bus or bus patrols, so there are different opportunities that AMA is working together with schools on to ensure that we have safe school zones for our pedestrians.”
For more information, contact Purcell at 403-795-2555 or allison.purcell@ama.ab.ca.

On patrol