The City of Sarnia could be running its own crossing guard program if council approves the recommendation Monday.
Mayor Mike Bradley said staff are recommending council hire a full-time employee to support the program and conduct a review of school safety.
"The suggestion is to look inside to have our own person directing the program and that we manage it for a couple of years," Bradley said. "There's substantial savings in doing that, because of these horrific price increases."
Currently, 29 crossings are managed through a third party operator and the most recent submissions for a two year contract were in the range of $1.3 million. A report from staff said the annual cost of a crossing guard at an individual location is now approximately $23,500 based on the proposed contract rates.
"Sarnia has had a crossing guard program for many years, many communities do not have them or have variations where students do it and not paid individuals," said Bradley. "But, the fact is, in the last number of years there's only been a couple of bidders on the contract and a horrendous increase in the prices. It's gone up over 223 per cent since 2018 and regrettably the money's not going to the guards, it's going to the companies."
Chatham Kent has phased out its crossing guard program and provided $500,000 in 2016 to implement crossing improvements.
St. Clair Township council decided in January 2021 to run the service in-house for ten years, while the program is phased out and guards are replaced with pedestrian crosswalks.
"Places like Chatham-Kent and St. Clair Township have moved in a totally different direction, saying 'we're not providing that service, we will provide crosswalks where necessary.' So, we'll have to look at all those options down the road," Bradley said.
It's also recommended council have staff review the program with the public during the 2023-2024 school year, and report back with recommendations and an updated crossing guard policy.
Council will consider the recommendations during its regular meeting on Monday, July 10 at 1 p.m.