A crossing guard outside Oceanway Middle School in Jacksonville's Northside neighborhood says she has been nearly hit by drivers four separate times while trying to get students safely across Oceanway Avenue at its intersection with Magnolia Avenue. Phyllis Seligman, who has volunteered at the crossing for two years, says the danger has become routine, not rare.
Seligman told First Coast News that drivers have yelled and cursed at her, tried to hit her, and thrown objects at her while she works the crossing. In one incident described to the outlet, a car nearly hit a child who ran across the road before Seligman could step into the street to block traffic. The posted speed limit on Oceanway Avenue is 30 miles per hour, according to the same report.
Jaclyn Baker, who has operated her business, Andy's Attic, across from the school for 10 years, says drivers routinely travel well above that posted limit. She has suggested adding more speed bumps near the school to force cars to slow down, per the outlet's reporting. Baker says her staff have had to walk customers across the street themselves and stop traffic to keep them from being struck.
A Crosswalk Signal That May Not Be Working
Part of the problem, according to Seligman, is a pedestrian crossing signal at Oceanway Avenue and Magnolia Avenue that did not appear to activate when she pressed the button. The crossing has a rapid rectangular flashing beacon designed to flash for about a minute once triggered. The City of Jacksonville said it had not received any reports about the crossing through its 630-CITY customer service system before the outlet's inquiry, and the city's Traffic Engineering Division maintains vehicular and pedestrian traffic control devices on city-owned roads, directing residents to file formal complaints through that same 630-CITY line or the MyJax portal, per Jacksonville's Traffic Engineering Division.
The city also said the beacon could be confused with a separate school-zone signal that only operates during certain times of day, according to its statement to the outlet. Following the outlet's reporting, the city said its Traffic Engineering Division would check the crossing's operation.
Who's Responsible for the Road
Duval County Public Schools has said that local law enforcement primarily handles traffic safety and enforcement on public roads, and the district reminds motorists to slow down, stay alert and follow traffic laws near schools. The district runs a “Be Safe. Be Seen.” campaign aimed at motorist awareness. That framing sets up a jurisdictional gap that parents and Baker are caught in the middle of: the school points to law enforcement, while the city says it never received a complaint about the specific crossing in question.
Florida law gives cities tools that could theoretically address the Oceanway Avenue corridor. House Bill 657, enacted in 2023, allows municipalities to install automated speed detection cameras in active school zones, but a county or municipality must enact an ordinance regarding their placement or installation and determine that the location warrants additional enforcement, according to the Florida Senate. Separately, Florida law provides that a school-zone speed limit may not be less than 15 miles per hour except by local regulation, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. A Florida personal-injury law-firm page also provides general information related to pedestrian incidents, according to Cowen Edwards Trial Lawyers.
A Countywide Pattern of Pedestrian Danger
The concerns at Oceanway Middle School fit into a broader pattern across Duval County. State crash records showed the county logged 481 pedestrian crashes and 39 pedestrian fatalities in 2025, followed by 2026 year-to-date pedestrian-crash data through April, according to First Coast News. An analysis of state crash data separately found that Duval County recorded an 8.1% pedestrian fatality rate per crash in early 2026, the highest among Florida's most populous counties and nearly double the rates in Miami-Dade County and Broward County, according to USA Today.
Pedestrian and driver safety campaigns are another potential tool for addressing the broader problem. Any new speed bumps or traffic-calming measures near Oceanway Middle School would still require city review.
Buses Already Get the Camera Treatment
Buses Already Get the Camera Treatment Automated enforcement is also discussed in the context of student transportation. No verified citation totals or fine amounts are established here. The article does not establish whether any such technology has been extended to the roadway outside Oceanway Middle School itself.
Oceanway Middle School, located at 143 Oceanway Avenue, serves roughly 828 to 840 students in grades 6 through 8, according to Duval County Public Schools. For now, Seligman, Baker and other parents are left navigating a system where no single agency has taken ownership of the crossing outside the school gates, even as the city says it will look into the signal that failed to activate.
