AUBURN – Since an Auburn Middle School student was hit by a bus on Sept. 26, cars and buses still compete to get in and out of the school’s driveway.

Now, Roger Perreault is there.

“I’ve been directed by the chief of police to come down here and patrol traffic every day until further notice,” said Perreault, a parking enforcement officer with the Auburn Police Department. He’ll stay there, said police Chief Phil Crowell, until officials determine the best solution for the intersection.

For the past week, Perreault’s been on Court Street as school begins and ends. He stops traffic for pedestrians, then for buses.

“I’ve been concerned with people getting impatient,” he said. At times, traffic is bumper-to-bumper and drivers seem aggressive, he said. He waves his hands to slow or stop traffic. “They’ve been cooperating,” he said.

As he spoke, his white police-issued SUV was parked with lights flashing. Flashing lights improve driver behavior, he said.

Parents and the school’s principal praised the patrol saying it’s making conditions safer. But parents worry it won’t be permanent.

Before the accident there were close calls and warnings that someone was going to get hurt.

Student has ‘a lot ahead’

Before Sept. 26, a police officer directed traffic most days. But when Derek Caron, 14, was hit as he rode his bike to school, there was no officer directing traffic, Principal Kathi Cutler said.

The teen suffered multiple breaks in his leg, had to undergo two operations, was hospitalized for nearly a week, is in “incredible pain” and faces physical therapy, his parents, Karen Ferland and Doug Caron said Tuesday.

“He’s got a lot ahead of him,” Caron said. They said they don’t want to see what happened to Derek happen to another student.

One week before the accident, Cutler spoke to the Auburn School Committee saying she was concerned with safety in front of the school. When a police officer was directing traffic, things went smoothly, she said. But when no one was there, vehicles and buses struggled to get in and out. The police chief said he had an officer there 75 percent of the time, but could not spare one every day.

The big problem is cars and buses trying to leave and turn left onto Court Street while other traffic is coming, Cutler said. “That’s where the hazard is. It’s the left turn.”

When the bus hit the student, a car and bus were trying to get onto Court Street, Cutler said. Police said the driver did not see the boy on the bike. “It’s just so hard to get out,” Cutler said. “It’s very frustrating to sit there and not be able to get out in traffic.”

No one deserves blame, she said. The bus driver, Harold Witham, 76, of New Gloucester, “is a wonderful man. He’s got a clean record.”

The accident “was a wake-up call,” Cutler said. After Derek was injured “people said ‘Enough’s enough. This is not acceptable.'” After interim Superintendent Tom Morrill and Crowell talked about it, a decision was made to have traffic directed the next day, Cutler said.

Parents: ‘The next child could be killed’

Without a street light or someone directing traffic, the congestion is like a mad house, parents said.

Collene Rioux, who dropped her daughter off at the middle school until this year, called the traffic “dangerous. We just had a child get hit. The next child could be killed.”

Melissa Collins, who was dropping her daughter off Tuesday, said conditions are better when someone’s directing traffic. Collins said she wasn’t surprised a student was hurt. “I knew it was going to happen some time,” she said. “I don’t think it was the fault of either side. It’s just not a good area.”

She and other parents said there needs to be a traffic light.

But on Sept. 19, Chief Crowell told the Auburn School Committee that the state must agree to put up a light since Court Street is a state road. According to state policy, recent studies show the amount of traffic and accidents weren’t enough to warrant a light, Crowell said.

Maine Department of Transportation traffic engineer Steve Landry said Tuesday that Court Street traffic probably isn’t enough for a light. If a light is put up with too little traffic, that could make the situation worse, he said.

Since the accident, the city has contacted the state, Crowell said. He agrees with parents and said he’ll strongly recommend the state put up a light. “The safety of students trump whether there’s enough traffic,” he said.