County efforts to improve traffic safety following two recent crashes at school bus stops

Two students from Montgomery County Public School System were struck in separate incidents near school bus stops. On Dec.12, a 9-year-old student from Bradley Hills Elementary School was hit by a school bus in Bethesda. She was taken by ambulance to a hospital in Washington, D.C., where she was pronounced dead about four hours later. On Dec. 13th, a 17-year-old from Walter Johnson High School was seriously injured while crossing the road to take his bus. He was struck by an SUV and was taken to the hospital with life threatening injuries. This came a day after the 9-year-old Bradley Hills Elementary School student was struck and killed by a school bus.

This issue was discussed on Saturday during a town hall session in Rockville with state and local officials. With the county’s total pedestrian fatalities for 2019 hitting 14 over the past week, residents spoke passionately on the need to address safety issues with roads, sidewalks and intersections that pose a threat to pedestrians and cyclists throughout the county. 

“In 2019, there have been 14 deaths on our roadways and nearly 600 incidents involving pedestrians and bicyclists,” County Council Member Evan Glass said. “We need drivers to slow down and keep their eyes on the road,” Glass further said. “We need to look up from our phones, lower or turn off the volume on our earbuds and be aware of our surroundings.” Glass noted that county officials had set an ambitious agenda by developing a 41-point Vision Zero plan two years ago.

While some progress had been made, Glass and some council members who attended the hearing joined residents in urging county leaders and state transportation officials to move more quickly to implement engineering solutions that will make roads safer for all users.

Rice, who chairs the education committee, is scheduling a school bus safety workshop for police and Montgomery County Public Schools. “All in all, we have to be more cautious as a community looking out for our children,” he said, “making sure we’re doing everything that we can to insure that our surroundings are safe for our kids.”

“These are just profound tragedies and we are all affected and our thoughts and prayers are with the families,” said Andrew Zuckerman, chief operating officer for Montgomery County Public Schools. “We are obviously going to do a few key things — number one, review all our protocols related to bus stop safety.”

Maryland state legislators will propose a new series of bills, in the wake of the school pedestrian accidents. One measure that will be officially offered when the legislature reconvenes in Annapolis next month will require a funding boost for transportation safety projects near schools and senior centers. The fund would include money collected in fines from drivers who illegally drive through crosswalks.  

Article by Dhruv Pai of Montgomery Blair High School

Photo by Avantika Selvajaran of Cabin John Middle School

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