School returns along with traffic chaos in Beaudesert

With an extra 280 year 7 students attending the school this year, parking congestion has worsened.

Some parents and children are placing themselves in danger during peak pick-up and drop-off times.

With no dedicated pedestrian crossing, children are crossing the busy highway to reach parents waiting at a makeshift carpark across the road.

Cars are also lining up along a dirt embankment directly outside the school, just one metre from passing traffic.

Stockleigh resident Donna McIlmurray was parked on the side of the highway and said she was forced to do it so her child did not have to cross the highway.

"It's pretty rough and a bit hectic, it's really hard to get into the carpark and out again, and then you have to drive right into town and turn around, so people would rather park here," she said.

"There's no crossing so I park here so my child doesn't have to cross the road and be put at risk."

Cedar Grove resident Wayne Cooper said he watched from his car on the side of the highway as hundreds of children crossed the road.

"It's pretty hopeless at the moment, I think some parents only care about picking up their own kid, once they're in the car they don't care about anyone else's," he said.

School principal Alan Smith said it was an issue the school was attempting to tackle.

"It's a perennial problem and it's been an issue for a long time," he said.

Mr Smith said the school had been working with Main Roads and Scenic Rim Regional Council for more than a year on the issue.

"An audit was commissioned last year by Councillor Jennifer Sanders and Main Roads to document the issue and work towards a solution, but I haven't heard anything about it recently," he said.

For now, Mr Smith said parents could help by picking up their children slightly later.

"We ask parents to delay their pick-up until around 3.10pm or 3.15pm, by that point most of the congestion is gone," he said.