A staff report recommending paid crossing guards at all Barrie elementary schools beginning in September, 2017, has been referred to the community services committee for more information.
Councillors had the option to approve the plan at a meeting on Monday, at an estimated cost of $650,000 per year.
Barrie Police currently administers a student crossing patrol program at elementary schools, for a cost of $40,000 annually, including the cost of safety vests and traffic cones.
Student safety patrollers are volunteers trained by police to assist children to safely cross the road before and after school.
All adjacent roadways within 250 metres of Barrie's elementary schools are posted as community safety zones with a 40 km/h posted speed limit.
There are 39 elementary schools in the city and crossing guards would be paid by the city, as required by the Highway Traffic Act.
A recent survey of 180 Ontario municipalities showed 63 per cent have crossing guard programs.
Ward 10 Councillor Mike McCann referred the report to committee, saying he still had questions about the cost and logistics of the new program.
"Do crossing guards make the students safer?" he asked.
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