One morning a trip downtown goes as smooth as silk. No delays, no double red light sit stills, no fender benders.
The next day the traffic is bumper to bumper. Long lines at the stop signs, multiple light changes before finally getting to enter the intersection, short cuts taken, and fender benders galore.
What happened? School started. The traffic doubled at the same time school zone speed reductions went into effect. Result: Chaos. Tempers flared, and floorboards ran brown with coffee.
It's time to reset the school schedule, let the tykes sleep a little later, and give real people a head start on the soccer moms and minivans.
But the traffic controllers are less concerned about commuters than about kids. So here's the justification straight from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Let Them Sleep: AAP Recommends Delaying Start Times of Middle and High Schools to Combat Teen Sleep Deprivation.
In a new policy statement published online Aug. 25, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends middle and high schools delay the start of class to 8:30 a.m. or later. Doing so will align school schedules to the biological sleep rhythms of adolescents, whose sleep-wake cycles begin to shift up to two hours later at the start of puberty.
No no no! 8:30am is too early! Make it 9:30. It's for the children.
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