BLUE ISLAND, Ill. (WBBM NEWSRADIO)-- Parents in south suburban Blue Island are turning up the heat on public officials to do something about pedestrian safety around Eisenhower High School after a number of pedestrians were hit by cars in recent years.
Eisenhower High School is located at 127th Street and Sacramento Avenue in Blue Island. Eight pedestrians have been hit by cars outside the high school in the last three years.
Two of the pedestrians were killed and one was paralyzed, according to Fred Bilotto, Mayor of Blue Island. Police said five people were hit by cars over the course of a year.
Parents, district officials, and elected leaders gathered at a public forum on Tuesday to talk about how to improve safety on 127th Street between Kedzie Avenue and Western Avenue.
The Daily Southtown reports that John Banks, the parent of freshman Jamarie Banks, who was struck Aug. 24 by a vehicle on 127th Street, asked officials to come up with better ideas to prevent accidents like his son's.
“It really messed me up,” Banks said about the incident. “Nobody ever expects for something like this to happen to their child. Nobody.”
Short- term solutions include signs and a safety study.
“These kids will be standing at the crosswalk, and nobody’s stopping,” Eisenhower Principal Erik Briseno said as reported by the Daily Southtown.
“There’s got to be a different way of grabbing driver’s attention and saying, ‘Hey, you’ve got to stop right at this crosswalk. There’s a park right here and there’s kids trying to cross.’”
Long-term solutions include lighting and visibility changes, speed enforcement, and a traffic barrier.
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