Morning traffic is a normal part of the Staples student routine, but wednesday’s situation was impossible to foretell as rain and the lack of a traffic agent caused further delays.

Heavy rain forced students, who usually walk, to drive or be driven to school. For students, wednesday morning’s undirected traffic proved daunting as many showed up late.

English teacher Brendon Giolitto shared that “About eight or nine kids came to my class late. We [teachers] got an email excusing them.”

Harrison Knapp ’16 was one of the late students. “It was probably 3 times as bad as usual. I was stuck in traffic from 7:15 to 7:45,” he said.

Meanwhile, teachers and other school staff were hardly affected by the morning events. Most teachers arrive at school before the bulk of students do and therefore did not find themselves in car-heavy situations that require directing by an agent.

Speaking for a majority of the mathematics department, math teacher Bill Walsh stated, “We come in early to beat the traffic and help students.”

Walsh’s sentiment was echoed by librarian Colin Neenan, who also added that any traffic and weather issues that were experienced around Staples paled to conditions on the Merritt Parkway.

When asked to comment on the additional traffic caused by the missing agent, the Westport Police Department had limited information as the agents are employed outside of the police department. However, the department stated that it took action as soon as possible to alleviate the problem.

Westport police captain Samuel Arciola said, “All I know is that an actual officer was assigned to patrol traffic at Staples as soon as we became aware of the problem. It just wasn’t soon enough to cover the start of the post.”

In spite of wednesday’s frenzy, a traffic agent is expected to restore commuting normalcy in the future.