Whether it’s walking, jogging, driving, or taking the bus, all students have to get to school somehow. However, if students drive, they might have seen a white Nissan rogue whistling past to get to the front of the line to either cut off a friend, a parent, or an unfortunate civilian who has to wait in line just to get to school on time.
Every morning at 7:37, this senior drives by with his two sophomore passengers to beat out the line. While the person in the driver’s seat enjoys this move, they name it and call it their “special,” other drivers might not say they enjoy it as much. Senior Will Balian drives to school in the morning and said he sees the move go down in action more often than not. Balian said that the cutting-off is quite annoying, but he has never been personally cut off despite a few close calls. “If they attempt to cut me off, I would stop it by not letting them cut me off,” Balian said.
Students, staff, and parents have all tried not to let them in, but the Nissan always finds a way to get in the front line to make the light and then turn into the parking lot just before that first bell rings. From the staff’s point of view, security can’t quite do anything until the cars enter the parking lot. They can only watch and advise. They say, “Be safe” or “Drive smart,” but until the cars make the turn-in, their power is limited.
Teen drivers crash more often than adults because they are less experienced. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says teen drivers are almost three times more likely to get into fatal crashes compared to drivers aged 20 or older. Most teen crashes happen during the hours when students are driving to or from school. Another report from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) found that teens are more likely to crash when other teens are in the car because passengers can distract the driver. These risks are especially high in the mornings when teens are in a rush to get to school.
Another senior, Marissa Cook, is a driver who has seen the move go down but instead of from the back of the line, she has seen it right up in front. Cook has been cut off two times and said she finds it upsetting because “everybody is going to the same place and cutting someone off just creates more chaos,” Cook said.
Another senior driver, Ryan Kaufman, who drives on the same route, said that he has seen the move go down and, unlike the other seniors, finds it humorous instead of annoying. “Yes, it is annoying because it is every morning, but unless it’s done to me, I find it funny and entertaining that they do it every day,” Kaufman said.
