Date : 25 August 2023
To : The Xavier School Community
From : School President’s Office
Re : TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT
The City Mayor’s office recently called for a meeting with the representatives of Xavier School, ICA, TPMO, MMDA, PNP, and other groups to discuss the traffic situation in the Xavier-ICA vicinity. We are working together to improve traffic flow but also recognize that with limited road capacity and an ever-increasing number of vehicles on the roads, a change in lifestyle is ultimately necessary to make city living more bearable. We have also observed that habits and expectations formed during the pandemic have been slow to adapt to our current situation.
Effective traffic management is crucial in addressing this concern, and the disciplined cooperation of all is necessary. With reference to Executive Order No. FMZ-007 suspending pay parking and disallowing parking in all the streets of San Juan, the Mayor has ordered strict enforcement of clamping illegally parked vehicles and ticketing erring drivers by the PNP, MMDA & TPMO. Please note that “illegal parking” includes those who double park and keep their hazard lights on.
The local government has hired more traffic enforcers to secure the compliance of motorists. On our part, as a community, we appeal for your support and cooperation to observe the following to help alleviate the traffic situation around Xavier.
1. Follow traffic rules and regulations – NO PARKING, NO WAITING, NO IDLING. Respect and obey traffic enforcers – the Xavier Security, TPMO, MMDA, PNP, barangay personnel.
2. DONE IN 15 SECONDS CHALLENGE, i.e., when bringing your son to school to STOP, DROP, and GO in less than 15 seconds.
○ The student should be ready to go down the car as soon as it stops because he has already – worn his ID, put on his mask if he is using one, been given all the reminders from the home, and fixed all school materials inside his bag/s, ready to alight once the vehicle stops.
○ Please inform your driver or designated guardians regarding the 15-second drop-off procedure if you are not the one bringing or fetching your son to/from school.
○ Ideally, the driver should not alight from the car. If needed, there should ideally be another adult to help the student alight quickly.
3. For PICK UP of students, please plan your time accordingly. It is best for parents/ drivers/ fetchers to arrive in the school vicinity only when it is nearing dismissal time.
Furthermore, we strongly encourage everyone to consider alternative options when bringing your son(s) to school. Please consider the following:
1. Use of the School Bus Service. Less than 5% of our students avail of this, and our nine (9) accredited providers are already at full capacity. We will try to contact more providers if there is sufficient demand.
2. Walk to School. Students who reside in Greenhills North, Greenhills West, Little Baguio, and other nearby streets may opt to sacrifice their usual short ride to school and have some early morning walking exercise instead. Marshalls/security guards are stationed at regular intervals to help with safety and security.
3. Carpooling. While this option may not prove as convenient and comfortable, carpooling will help lessen the number of vehicles coming to the school. This adjustment in your routine may also go a long way in building grit and in fostering the virtues of cooperation, flexibility, generosity, service, and helpfulness.
We also encourage everyone to use the school’s Pay Parking Building (Gate 9). This is specifically for parents/ drivers/ fetchers who need to wait for the student’s dismissal or if you have transactions in school that will take time. The operating hours are from 6:00 AM to 7:00 PM, from Monday to Friday. The parking rate is P50 for the first three (3) hours and an additional P10 for every succeeding hour. There is a FREE 15-minute grace period upon entry.
As you know, reporting and dismissal times are now staggered to help space out the flow of vehicles around the campus. The school is working with the San Juan City government to address the traffic concerns and we appeal to everyone’s civic responsibility in ensuring the successful implementation of all our efforts, for these will contribute greatly to the common good.
If you have any questions, concerns, and suggestions regarding this, please feel free to email security-mail@xs.edu.ph.
Thank you very much for your support and cooperation.
(sgd.)
Fr. Aristotle C. Dy, SJ, Ph.D.
School President