Originally Posted By threeundertwo <a href="http://cbs5.com/topstories/local_story_122161252.html" target="_blank">http://cbs5.com/topstories/loc al_story_122161252.html</a> This happened just down the street from us. My daughter attends a different middle school. I'm just in shock. Had I been there, I'm sure I would have been one of the parents that ran over and lifted the SUV up. Our middle school pickup/dropoff area is a nightmare of congestion and rudeness and road rage and cell-phone drivers and masses of pedestrians. I hope this convinces our administrators to change the whole procedure. I'm just really in shock.
Originally Posted By SuzieQ I've been hearing about this all afternoon. Truly horrifying. Thank God none of the injuries are life threatening. As one reporter pointed out, though, they don't know yet if any are life altering.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 I seen on the news this evening. Terrifying. Still no word on what was up with the driver. Truly scary. I know from my many days of dropping off and picking up my nephew and godchild just how volatile a school drop off area can be. People amaze me.
Originally Posted By Mary Poppins Terrifying. My prayers go out to all who have been hurt. I hope everyone makes it.
Originally Posted By ReadingMom School parking lots are the worst. We had numerous PTA and community meetings about this issue. We even had a traffic police officer come and talk to parents. Nothing worked. When I pick my high school age daughter up from school we meet at a side street by the school. The parking lot is much too volatile for a non-confrontational person like myself. : )
Originally Posted By melekalikimaka Wow, for some reason I didn't know that many schools have awful parking lot problems. Before our new school was opened, there were so many times when I would be stunned by people's rudeness and stupidity. I'm surprised more people aren't hurt in these situations. How sad. I hope everyone survives this.
Originally Posted By Lisann22 I once witnessed a woman in her Benz drive up and over a low growing hedge and cement barrier to get within inches of her child standing at the curb in front of the school. God forbid the women get in line behind oh about 8 other cars or that her precious little baby walk about 30 feet to the left. <rolling eyes>
Originally Posted By smedley Terrible news, I hope they're all ok, we have an infant school at the end of our street (ages 6-9) and the way some of the people drive/park/drop their kids amazes me. This school is round a blind corner, and yet they stop, open the car door and basically throw their kids out. I've had a number of occasions where I've come round the corner (slowly) and had kids just walk out in front of me, very scary.
Originally Posted By amazedncal2 That is just so awful Like ReadingMom, I always had my kids meet me on a side street away from the bus and parking lot. I always said it didn't hurt them to walk a few more feet but really it was me who couldn't take the confusion and angry drivers. Sounds to me like the man had an anxiety attack, dozed off or something like that, a 2004 Honda shouldn't have failing brakes. My sister was recently hit by a car. She was in a crosswalk (crossing light still had the little man) when a lady pulled out of a shopping center and ran into her at about 15mph. Sis flew through the air to the curb. Nothing was broken and her head didn't hit the cement but she was banged up and bruised and plenty hurt. She was in pain and on pain meds for days. Those poor kids even though were thankfully "OK" are still in for plenty of pain and nightmares. My heart goes out to them.
Originally Posted By threeundertwo From today's news; "Of the three boys in the ICU unit, one has a lacerated kidney and a broken ankle, a second victim has a fractured pelvis, and the third student received around 30 stitches in his head after a severe head wound, Kleinheinz said. All three students are in stable condition in the ICU." My guess is that the driver hit the gas instead of the brake pedal. One parent from the school said that the curb is really high. That's just my guess though. I will say, I am one who believes elderly drivers should be tested more frequently for reaction time and general driving skills. And at our middle school, several students were hit in an intersection after their parents dropped them off on a side street and they walked to school, so as frustrating as it is, I give my daughter a ride all the way to the school curb. I guess I'm surprised too, at how this is happening at so many other schools, according to LPers. I'm trying to figure out why. Is the architecture of school parking lots bad? Around here, many schools are 50's-era and designed for a much smaller student body. Are school districts no longer funding neighborhood buses? When I grew up in Portland, OR, I rode the little yellow school bus every day all the way through High School. It was unheard of for parents to drive their kids to school.
Originally Posted By Ursula What ever happened to walking to school? We had to walk to Jr. and Sr. High. Grade school was too far away, so we were driven and there was never a problem. Are drop-off areas just not minded by traffic attendants? Or is it that funding isn't there for a traffic attendant? Clearly, drop-off areas need to be a no-cell phone zone. I know I don't have kids, but I do drive to work past one school that is on a busy street. The parents driving their kids have to not only navigate the horrible traffic, but they have to turn left without a signal through traffic and into a drive-way the distance of two cars lengths. Needless to say, it is frustrating for everyone.
Originally Posted By threeundertwo Our schools are 1) too far to walk, and 2) we live on a steep hill with narrow twisty roads with no shoulder, let alone sidewalks. Lots of blind corners. It's just not safe. The drop off areas, and even the street, are manned by the principal, the vice principals, and several teachers. We get endless emails and notices explaining the traffic flow - although these guidelines are ignored by parents who would just rather do it *their* way. The principal was at the curb when the accident happened, and she and the track coach were among those who lifted the SUV up off the kids. There isn't funding in the city budget this year for traffic cops at the schools.
Originally Posted By Ursula I see. So is there a way to monitor the bad parents and send them a school fine for doing it their way? Or telling them they just can't use the drop-off zone because they are endangering others?
Originally Posted By threeundertwo I think that would be the realm of vigilante-ism (is that a word). Nobody at the school has the bandwidth to do that. I think a solution lies more along the lines of staggered start times - create a zero period and a 7th period and have half the kids arrive and leave school at a time. I don't know if the district can afford to fund this kind of thing though.
Originally Posted By Ursula ^ Good idea. Or maybe have two-drop-off zones, one on either side of the school.
Originally Posted By bloona Awful news, my heart goes out to all involved, I hope they heal well. It's the same at my sons school, we get a school news letter every few weeks, and the headteacher asks ever time that parents stop parking on the zig zag lines outside the school. Or if possible to walk to school, as most children there live in the schools catchment area, (which means that they have around a ten to fifteen minute walk ) but still Id say at least twice a week, I see cars parked illegally outside, or parents parking their cars, who I know live within an easy walking distance. It's a small estate and has no areas without sidewalks. The senior school which is also close by, takes children from a larger catchment area, and SOME do need to be driven there (or take the schhol bus) The parking outside is so bad, that cars arrive up to an hour before the school day finishes, and parents sit there in the cars lining the streets , waiting for their children.
Originally Posted By Autopia Deb I admit, I'm worried about the boy with the head injury. There is just so much that can go wrong there with swelling and clots. I hope they keep a close eye on him, even if he looks fine. As for us, I'm just happy we live close to both the Elementary School and the High School so the only time I'll have to worry about driving my kid to school and dealing with the crazy drop off/pick ups will be the two years he's in Jr. High. That will be fun.
