BALDWIN COUNTY, Ala. (WKRG) — Wet roads Wednesday morning combined with back-to-school traffic created a slow commute for drivers on the Eastern Shore.
“We want everybody to get where they’re going safely, especially the kids,” said Lt. Shane Nolte with Fairhope Police. Nolte was assisting with traffic control near Fairhope High School Wednesday morning.
Fairhope Police were out on the streets as Baldwin County Public School students headed back to class, making sure drivers obey school zones and focus on the road.
“Put the phone down, set the texts aside, the phone calls. Try to get to where you’re going first,” he added.
Just up the road in Spanish Fort police said Highway 31 near Rockwell Elementary was backed up for a couple of miles, as expected. Further west at Spanish Fort Elementary School traffic was moving slowly Wednesday morning, but police say they’re working with school administrators to fix the problem this week before it gets worse.
“The plan is to get as much traffic off of Highway 31 as possible and onto School Road. That way there’s not that huge backup of traffic. It can be a safety issue when you’ve got 4 lanes of traffic going and all of a sudden it’s stopped,” said Sgt. Steven Mooney with Spanish Fort Police.
They plan to have two lanes of traffic entering Spanish Fort Elementary School to prevent additional backups on Highway 31. Police are also looking at ways to help the flow of traffic at Rockwell, working with the Alabama Department of Transportation this week to possibly use an existing paved area as a turning lane in an effort to keep vehicles moving.
“As quick as we can get all of that traffic off of Highway 31 that’s going into the school the better off that everyone will be,” he continued.