Get on the parents association of your school and argue for eliminating the pickup line/banning cars from within 200m of the school, or changing it so it is not a safety hazard.
Always thought it is better to demolish an obstacle rather than finding a workaround.
How do you suppose children get home from school then?
You can walk your kids to your parked car in the next block?
That only works when a few parents do it. It would be just as much of a problem if every parent parked and walked.
Our car line helps jeeps the kids safe because there are not hundreds of kids in the street. they are sitting next to the building waiting until their parent is 2 cars from a door opening spit, then they get up and wait in right where their parent will pull up to.
If every kid was walking away from the school, Wed have to worry a lot more about kids in the parking lot and street.
Walkers are not allowed to leave the school until the buses are gone, and we've usually gotten through at least half of the car line by that point anyway. The wait comes from parents who get to the school 30 min before school let's out. The whole line is done 20 min after classes are done.
Our school has a mix, which is why I don't think it is much of a problem.
1. Let out times are staggered for younger and older grades.
2. Some kids take the bus
3. Some older kids walk home
4. Some parents get in the car line. It's a loop. The sign says if your kid isn't there, keep circling.
5. Some parents park and walk a few blocks.
6. Some kids stay later for after school care
My kid is #6, later for after school, but I do occasionally have to pick him up early. And he's never waiting because he never gets picked up early. I ALWAYS, when dropping off or picking up in "prime times", park the car and walk a few blocks. If I manage to avoid peak times (like if I'm at school 1/2 hour early), I can park in the lot.
My neighbor is the one who impresses me. Her 2 older kids are in preschool 2 miles from home. They walk and/ or bike. She's been doing that since forever, so for awhile she pushed a double stroller and carried the baby on her chest. Now her kids bike and she pushes a stroller.
In any event, if I were picking up an elementary kid and I had 2 younger kids in the car, I wouldn't be parking and walking unless I had an appropriate stroller. It's a complete PITA. I would do what someone else recommends, which is show up at the end of the line, so you aren't waiting.
Keep a note on your phone as to "what time" you get to where your kid gets in the car. Do that for 2 weeks. Show up 1 minute before then.