The ACT is another step closer to joining the rest of Australia by trialling the deployment of lollipop people at school crossings.
When children at Namadgi School in Kambah returned to classes this week they were greeted by their new safety supervising officer.
Rudi Schneider is just one of the government-funded supervisors helping kids cross safely over busy roads in school zones.
The ACT is the last Australian jurisdiction to roll out the safety measure.
Most dangerous crossings identified
Men and women in high-visibility vests, holding a stop sign and a whistle, have been allocated to 20 schools across the city.
The most dangerous crossings were selected for the trial and include public and private primary and secondary schools.
Mr Schneider said he and a team of dedicated safety supervisors undertook training around traffic management and working with children.
"It's a manageable sort of thing for a retiree to do," he said.
"The idea is to get the children to wait at the kerb until there is a break in the traffic.
"I then walk out and stop the traffic with my lollipop.
"Once they've stopped, I blow the whistle and the pedestrians can walk across."
At Namadgi School students from pre-school to Year 10 use the crossing, which is just around the corner from one of the city's busiest thoroughfares Drakeford Drive.
School principal Gareth Richards said additional safety measures would give teachers, parents and carers greater peace of mind.
"When cars turn off a road where the speed is 80kph, they turn into suburban areas and are still often travelling at speeds that are quicker than we would like," he said.
"We're seeing already this morning that sight of the high-vis is getting the cars to slow down.
"Until now we haven't always been able to man this as effectively as we'd like to."
