Traffic around Robinson Middle School will be tricky during bond project

Motorists, be warned: Traffic around Robinson Middle School in Wichita will be tricky at certain times of the day starting Monday.

Because of a bond construction project at the school, at Second and Oliver, school buses will line up along the west side of the school each morning and afternoon, blocking the right lane of northbound Oliver, officials said.

“With great progress will come some temporary discomfort in the way of alternative parking around our school,” principal Amy Champlin said in a letter to Robinson families this week.

During construction of a new auditorium and practice gymnasium, approved by school board members earlier this month, Robinson will lose access to its parking lot on the south side of the school. Construction is expected to take 18 months.

That means school buses will line up along Oliver from 7:30 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. and from 3 to 3:15 p.m. each weekday, limiting the street to one lane northbound between Second and Third.

Parent drop-off and pickup will occur along the west side of Bleckley, a one-way street just east of the school.

Robinson employees are being directed to park along the east curb of Bleckley, the north curb of Third Street or on gravel lots at the northeast corner of Third and Bleckley.

The school’s main entrance will remain on the south side of the school and will be accessible from the sidewalk along Bleckley, Champlin said.

A no-parking area on one section of Bleckley will allow for students to cross the street to use the playground during the day, or to evacuate in case of emergency, she said.

Champlin said law enforcement officers have agreed to help direct traffic the first few days of the new plan, when students return from Thanksgiving break.

This story was originally published November 26, 2015 at 3:02 PM with the headline "Traffic around Robinson Middle School will be tricky during bond project."