With the new lunchroom seating policies at North Atlanta, students have been forced to eat on the third floor, either in the cafeteria, in the atrium, or outside. However, every day becomes a traffic jam as students bottleneck at the elevators as they try to race to claim their spot to avoid taking the dreadful walk up the stairs.
The moment the teachers give the students the go-ahead to leave the cafeteria, the floodgates are opened as multiple students rush and push past each other to try to get to the elevators first and secure a spot without being pushed off. As students try to squeeze into the elevators, there’s an awkward pause where nobody can move when multiple people are stuck in the elevator doors. “I know kids are trying to get to class as quickly as possible so they aren’t late,” said Sergeant Barker. “I’ve seen fire trucks come down here to physically open the doors to let people out.”
During the crowded and congested lunch periods, as students all attempt to cram into the elevator at the same time, the elevators often don’t hold up their end of the bargain. Students constantly complain about elevators overloading easily, and the elevator gets turned into an every-man-for-himself situation as students argue over who should get off the elevator so the rest can go. Even after the students finally agree, however, the elevator gets reset as it takes the students on a wild goose chase up and down the different floors except for the ones they actually want to go to. “It’s like a battle,” said 11th-grade student Johnathan Henderson. “Since lunch is at three and no one feels like walking, everyone’s trying to push on the elevators and end up getting hurt.”
It’s definitely tedious whenever you walk up to an elevator button terminal and right as you press the floor you want to go to, the terminal breaks and you have to find a new one. However, new button terminals have been noticeably installed on every floor to hopefully give a smoother experience. “If the teachers staggered the different sections and let the atrium out, then the cafeteria, to control the flow of traffic, it would be easier for students to get in the elevators before class starts,” said Ms. Everett.
As stampedes of students continue to rampage towards the elevator doors after lunch, teachers and staff are still finding solutions to the crowding problem. No one wants to walk up nine floors after eating, but there needs to be a focus on each other’s safety so no one gets turned into a pancake.
