Extra patrolling officers will be dispatched to watch over local schools during their drop-off and pickup times. The campaign aims to educate new and returning parents by sending out letters and maps containing information about problem areas, methods to relieve traffic congestion and the importance of safety.

"The problem is too many cars squeezing into too small a space in too little time," says Deputy Steve Gristel.

Redwood appears to be the most affected school this year, with the middle school traffic being combined with West Valley College traffic and construction.

Gristel, along with Sgt. Bill Taite, have mapped out trouble areas and are keen on reducing the amount of violations that occur every day. The most common problems cited are speeding, parking vehicles in no parking zones, parents stopping their cars in the roadway to load and unload children, and drivers making U-turns over double yellow lines in the midst of heavy traffic.

For the past two years the traffic unit of the sheriff's department has been working with the public safety commission to address each school's problem areas. The result was several schools, including Redwood and Foothill Elementary, spending money on redesigning their parking lots.

The new parking lots are in but still have not significantly decreased the number of heavy traffic jams. It is hoped that this campaign might be effective by alerting parents to trouble areas as well as other modes of transportation for their children. The department strongly encourages carpooling or having kids walk and bike to school.

"Many parents who only live one block away are still driving their kids to school," says Gristel. "That causes traffic problems, but it also teaches kids that there is only way to get somewhere, and that is by car."

Taite notes that the main goal of the program is to ensure the safety of children. "Saratoga historically has a low pedestrian accident rate, and we would like to keep it that way."

Officers involved with the campaign will not only be distributing letters and maps to schools, but also attending parent nights and school meetings to give presentations. "We want to avoid the 'I didn't know' response," says Gristel.

Parents interested in carpooling to avoid the schooltime traffic crunch are encouraged to get the word out and organize a schedule. Alternative Transportation Solutions also offers information and opportunities to join local carpooling groups. Visit www.altrans.net for more information.