A crosswalk outside North Shore Middle School in Hartland has become a flashpoint after a parent recorded video of a silver pickup truck driving through it while a crossing guard was helping a child cross the street. Edward Kranick, the Town of Delafield's chairman, says he wants changes made before someone gets seriously hurt at the intersection of North Shore Drive and Old School House Road.
Kranick says he gets calls from parents about the crossing on a weekly basis, and as reported by TMJ4 News, he has called for narrowing the road, adding a median, and lowering the speed limit at the crossing. He also wants the Hartland-Lakeside School District to provide bus transportation for students who have to cross North Shore Drive, rather than leaving them to walk across on their own.
According to FOX6 News, Kranick simply wants enforcement at the crossing. “I just want a squad here, enforcing the traffic laws and making sure this is a safe crossing,” he said.
A Crossing Guard's Close Call, Caught on Video
The video at the center of the concern appears to show a truck driving through the crosswalk while a crossing guard is still in it. Andy Martinez, a parent whose son attends North Shore Middle School, volunteered as a crossing guard there last year and says he has repeatedly seen drivers fail to notice people in the crosswalk until the last second. Martinez says the crossing simply isn't safe for children or the crossing guards trying to protect them.
The district's transportation policy adds another layer to the debate. The Hartland-Lakeside School District has a pay-to-ride program for students who live within two miles of school, but under state guidelines the district is only legally required to bus those students when a hazard prevents them from walking. Wisconsin's administrative code, per the state's education rules, puts the responsibility on school boards to develop a plan providing proper safeguards for pupils who face unusual hazards walking to and from school, and a related statutory provision applies specifically to districts where those hazards exist for pupils living less than two miles away.
Dueling Traffic Studies, Years Apart
The Waukesha County Sheriff's Office has now studied the crossing twice. A 2021 study noted drivers failing to slow as students approached the crosswalk and identified visibility and traffic concerns. A newer three-day study conducted September 9–11, 2026, found no crosswalk violations during its observation period and determined the specific crossing was not hazardous — though it did identify other pedestrian locations along North Shore Drive as unusually hazardous.
Kranick isn't satisfied with that conclusion. He says the latest study represents only a few mornings and doesn't reflect what parents are actually telling him. The sheriff's traffic study, done about three weeks before the report, deemed the crossing safe overall, but Kranick's pushback underscores how a short observation window can clash with the lived experience of families who cross there every day.
District Points to New Signs and Lighting
The school board has approved moving forward with new 15-mph school-zone signs equipped with solar-powered flashing LED beacons and programmable timers, intended to establish clearer times when the school-zone speed limit actually applies. Those upgrades echo a broader statewide standard: Wisconsin's traffic-engineering manual notes that the state rarely installs and maintains flashing beacons alongside speed-limit or school-speed-limit signs, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, which makes locally funded additions like these notable.
Superintendent Tina Vogelmann says the district staffs crossing guards before and after school for both North Shore Middle School and Hartland South during arrival and dismissal times, and that it has worked with Waukesha County and other stakeholders on safety improvements, including funding and installing additional lighting and warning signage at the crossing. “We will continue to work with our community partners, review new information, and take appropriate action that is within our reach,” Vogelmann said, adding that student safety remains the district's top priority.
The push for upgrades isn't happening in isolation. A phase-one safety package worth $7,065.50 for the Northshore/Marshall Street crosswalk was approved by the Hartland-Lakeside J3 School District board in August, adding more visible 15-mph school-zone signs and additional warning beacons, according to Citizen Portal. Other Wisconsin communities have made similar moves this fall; Little Chute added new flashing beacons at key intersections and adjusted student routes, as reported by WBAY, as districts across the state grapple with how to keep students safe crossing busy roads on their way to class.
