Safety concerns raised over district’s bus stop

Citing concern for the safety of children at a school bus stop in Monroeville, a parent is asking the Gateway school board to consider changing where the bus picks up students at Stroschein and Cedar Ridge roads.

“It is very unsafe for my children. It is very unsafe for all the children,” Justin Peacock told the board at its Nov. 8 meeting.

He asked if the bus could travel on Cedar Ridge and around the apartment complex that is located there instead of having the children wait at the busy intersection.

Fifteen to 20 elementary school children are at the stop in the mornings, he said, and the area is “very cluttered” as parents who drive their children to the stop often park on the sides of the road near it. The children stand near a guardrail, he said, but there is not muchspace for them to wait.

Gateway’s director of transportation, Bonnie Easha, said the bus stop has beendiscussed previously.

“We’ve reviewed this in years past and in the current school year,” she said.

Ms. Easha said the district’s school bus company, Student Transportation of America, has determined that a bus cannot safely maneuver into the apartment complex on Cedar Ridge because of vehicles parked along the road there and also because Monroeville does not plow all the way into the apartment complex.

The municipality stops plowing near the pool because it is private property. Ms. Easha said the bus companyhas said there is no safe way for a bus to make a turn outof the complex.

Board member John Ritter, who worked as a school bus driver, said, “I would certainly not want to pull into that section of the building and go around it,” with people moving in and out of the buildings and vehicles possibly in the way.

Ms. Easha said the situation might improve if parents stop parking on the side of the road near the stop. But Mr. Peacock said that wouldn’t really make much difference and noted “no parking” signs are already posted in the area.

“There’s no stop sign. It is not safe at all,” he said, adding that drivers can make a left turn into the complex without stopping.

The board encouraged Mr. Peacock to go to a Monroeville council meeting and ask if the municipality could start enforcing the “no parking” restriction in that area. Board member Chad Stubenbort suggested asking Monroeville about placing a speed bump near the stop.

Board members also suggested that children stand at least 15 to 20 feet from Stroschein Road and then move up when the bus approaches.

Superintendent William Short said the administration would examine the information Mr. Peacock providedand get back to him.

Also at the Nov. 8 meeting, the board voted unanimously to move forward with paving the side entrance to Gateway High School’s stadium near the tennis courts. The project is not to exceed $12,000.