Goal: measure what parents and children meet on the ground during the morning run, then propose a single change that improves safety and flow quickly.
Scope
- Time window: 08:00 to 10:00 on a midweek school day.
- Crossings tested:
- Avda. Lepanto zebra by the primary gates.
- Cami Cabanes zebra near Mercadona.
- Avda. Augusta crossing at the roundabout.
Method
- Counts in five minute blocks: children, accompanying adults, prams.
- Driver behavior: full stop, rolling stop, non-compliance.
- Waiting time to achieve a safe gap.
- Physical checks: curb height at dropped kerb, tactile paving, paint condition, pole placements, push-button and sounder state, shade on the waiting side.
- Photos taken front and side to record sightlines and clutter.
Site notes and timings
- Avda. Lepanto, primary gates
- 08:00 to 08:30: 64 children, 47 adults.
- Local police assisted for 10 minutes, then left.
- Full stops: 73 percent. Two rolling stops that forced parents to pause mid-zebra.
- Tactile paving short by one tile on the school side, leads prams to the lip, not the flat.
- Shade: none on the waiting side after 08:20. Queue stands in full sun.
- Average wait for a clean crossing: 12 seconds, rising to 18 seconds at 08:25.
- Cami Cabanes, Mercadona
- 08:35 to 09:00: 29 children, 18 adults.
- Paint half faded. One leg of the zebra almost invisible at 15 meters.
- Full stops: 71 percent. Two clear non-stops during the window.
- Curb lip: measured 7 cm at the north corner. One pram needed a rear-wheel lift.
- Shade: awning covers half the queue, but the pram area is in sun.
- Average wait: 18 seconds.
- Avda. Augusta, roundabout crossing
- 09:05 to 09:45: 96 crossings total.
- Full stops: 61 percent. Drivers approach at higher speeds from the roundabout exits.
- Push-button sounder not working. Two cones from earlier works left on the desire line, causing a sideways detour with prams.
- Curb lip: 4 cm on one side, 6 cm on the other.
- Average wait: 13 seconds when a cluster forms, 9 seconds when the stream thins.
Aggregate measures
- Average wait across sites: 14 seconds.
- Full-stop compliance: 68 percent.
- Average curb lip at dropped kerbs: 5.2 cm.
- Shade coverage on waiting side at peak: 33 percent.
- Paint condition: only one of six zebra approaches reads cleanly at 20 meters.
Context for families and buyers
If you are choosing between Old Town streets, Port apartments, or Arenal villas and you care about the school run, pair this audit with local area notes and street layouts on A Place in Javea. It helps to see where family streets sit, which villa zones feed the nearest crossings, and how pavements link to schools before shortlisting viewings.
What the numbers mean
- A third of drivers are not stopping fully at the first roll. Parents compensate by toeing forward to claim the crossing, which shortens sight time for faster approaches.
- The combination of faded paint and direct morning sun reduces contrast. Where paint reads poorly, rolling stops increase.
- Small physical snags matter. A 5 to 7 cm lip forces a pram tilt, which adds two to four seconds at the exact moment gaps open and close.
Quick wins by site
- Avda. Lepanto: repaint ladder bars, add a narrow shade strip at the school-side approach, replace the missing tactile tile so pram wheels track to the flat.
- Cami Cabanes: repaint both legs, grind the 7 cm lip to 2 cm, move the freestanding advert board that blocks the sightline from the shop corner.
- Avda. Augusta: restore push-button sound alert, remove cones and sweep grit from the desire line, repaint the outer two bars that have lost contrast.
What to schedule next
- A low-cost repaint run across all three sites in one shift, timed for the coolest early morning.
- A kerb grind team with a single tool and vacuum to bring lips to 2 cm or less.
- A one page driver notice to police social media: school week repaint, please reduce speed and expect wet markings before 09:30.
One fix
Start with Avda. Lepanto on the school side: add a 2 meter shade awning aligned with the queue line, repaint the zebra the same morning, and replace the missing tactile tile. Cost is low, disruption is minimal, and the change improves visibility, comfort, and compliance in the busiest 30 minute window.