Traffic Changes Expected At John Marshall High School As Construction Continue

Motorists Asked To Be Patient During JMHS Aquatic Center Construction

GLEN DALE -- Marshall County Schools officials want motorists to be prepared and patient for anticipated traffic congestion on W.Va. 2 when school starts at John Marshall High School on Wednesday.

All motorists visiting the campus must use the main entrance and exit on W.Va. 2 in front of the school this year, as a secondary entrance and exit behind the campus will remain closed during construction of the new John Marshall High School aquatic center.

With the secondary entrance and exit closed, officials anticipate increased congestion in the morning before school begins and in the afternoon when school lets out.

With this in mind, Marshall County Schools Superintendent Shelby Haines met Wednesday with Glen Dale Police Department Chief Edward Vogler, Glen Dale Mayor Janet Scott and Marshall County Sheriff Mike Dougherty to discuss the situation. The departments will work together to direct traffic and help relieve congestion each school day.

"There's only going to be one entrance and exit, so in the mornings and afternoons it's going to be very congested," Vogler said. "So the Glen Dale police and sheriff's department will be here to do traffic control to try to make the egress and exit a lot smoother. So everybody just needs to be patient, particularly at the beginning of the school year until we get everything figured out."

Vogler said, if possible, motorists should leave a little earlier than usual for their morning commutes.

"For the first few weeks of school, it's going to be confusing and congested until we work out all the bugs and find a smooth pattern; so everyone needs to be patient with us," he added.

Dougherty said his deputies will assist Glen Dale police. He noted the Marshall County Emergency Management Agency also will place digital signage along W.Va. 2 to remind motorists of anticipated delays related to school traffic.

"First and foremost we're asking for a lot of patience from the motoring public," Dougherty said. "The traffic is always heavy in the morning anyhow so we're just going to be there to get traffic in and out and enforce the 15 mph speed school zone. There's so much traffic and when you add speed on top of that it makes it 10-times worse trying to get them in and out of there."

Haines said there also will be some changes to campus parking because of the ongoing construction. A steel delivery soon will take up a row of student parking, along with a crane that will be used to move the steel.

The same amount of parking will remain available, but some spaces have been moved to other parts of the campus, she said.