Walking through the hallways of Loy Norrix can make some people feel like a matchbox car in the hands of a toddler. The endless movement and jolting motions seem to never end. 

Passing time at Loy Norrix brings on the difficulty of traveling through congested hallways during the five minute passing time between classes. With a variety of classes spread across the school, the central hallways fill up quickly. The number of students plus the limited space in the hallways can make traveling to the next class a nightmare. 

The Kalamazoo Public Schools website says that Loy Norrix was built in 1961 and was meant to hold about 1600 students. It holds about 1800 students today. 

The hallways at LN are wide, but with 1800 students in the halls at the same time, passing time can feel very chaotic.

“I think that there are too many students moving through too small a space at one time,” junior Krystiana Bernstein said. 

  The difference between the number of students between middle school and high school can be frightening. According to research found at IES NCES’ website, Milwood Magnet has a little over 600 students and Maple Street Magnet has about 850 students. 

For freshmen coming into Norrix, there is an increase of about 1,000-1,200 students in the hallways. This can make it difficult for students as they have to trudge through other groups of students starting and stopping to talk to friends and walking head-down on their phones. 

“It’s really annoying,” freshman Rosie Hill said, “I feel like I could get to my classes a lot faster if there was a better system.”

Students have to walk through and around different groups of people just to get to a class that could be right around the corner. 

“It’s usually pushing and shoving,” said Bernstein. “If not me having to do it, it’s the other people pushing and shoving me out of the way.” 

The hallway between the A wing and B wing, the main hallway by the cafeteria and four corners are some of the spots where students find the most congestion. Four corners connects the main hallway, part of the C wing, part of K wing, and the bridge to the J wing. 

 As a result of the congestion, some students are cutting it close to their classes, making it to class with a minute or less to spare. The potential stress to get to class could add to the normal stress of a daily life as a teenager. 

“I have band class and that is in the J wing. Going from my fourth hour in the bottom K wing to the J wing is kinda a hassle,” Bernstein said, “especially going through four corners because everybody likes to mingle there.”

However, some students don’t need to travel to the classes across the school. Some students just need to turn a corner, but that can be its own issue.

“It is especially hard to turn,” Hill said. “It’s like if you had a bunch of cars, everybody just goes whenever they can and whenever they want, and they aren’t being mindful of other people.”   

 Traveling through the school can have its ups and downs, but some students have been able to find loopholes. For example, both Hill and Bernstein agree that the hallway between the C wing and the B wing is fairly easy to pass through compared to the other hallways.  

“Use the hallway that is right by the tower,” Bernstein said. “It’s usually very empty and very nice.”

Now your matchbox car has a new set of wheels and is cruising on by.