PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Near the Pinellas Academy of Math and Science, traffic can be an issue.
“The morning is just kind of chaotic,” said Nicole Vernon, whose daughter attends PAMS.
“For years, there has been a huge traffic, parking problem here at PAMS. It’s a school that’s in obviously very small proximity of neighborhood and roads,” she added.
The charter school sits off of South Highland Avenue, a two-lane road.
“So there’s always parking problems, traffic issues with drop off, pick up,” said Vernon.
According to the most recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics, there were 887 students enrolled at PAMS for the 2021-2022 school year.
“Since it’s a charter school, there is no bus system. So that many people trying to get in and out is nearly impossible,” said Vernon.
Parents like Vernon told ABC Action News that the traffic is particularly bad because there are few options for them to park when dropping off or picking up their kids.
“There is no parking whatsoever. They have a tiny little lot in the front that is usually just for teacher parking… So I don’t know what they want us to do,” said Vernon.
When parents don’t have time to wait in the drop-off line that some said can take up to 45 minutes, they park at nearby businesses instead to quickly walk their kids to school. However, that comes with its own issues, too, as many are in tow away zones.
“These local businesses like to tow cars,” said Vernon.
Vernon has seen multiple cars get towed.
“It’s extremely frustrating,” she said.
ABC Action News spoke with multiple parents off-camera who didn’t want to be filmed. Some have had to pay more than $100 to get their cars back.
“To come out here and have to pay that kind of money after you’ve just done all the school shopping and whatnot, it gets very disheartening,” said Vernon.
As enrollment at the school continues to grow, thus worsening the traffic and parking issues, parents are calling for change.
“Something between Pinellas County and the school acquiring some sort of parking, maybe some sort of staggered drop off for the morning, just something for parents so that we don’t have to go through this frustration,” said Vernon.
The Pinellas County School District does not govern charter schools, so officials told ABC Action News they aren’t able to provide a fix.
ABC Action News has reached out to both the Pinellas Academy of Math and Science and its board of directors about these issues multiple times.
They have not responded yet.
