Comments about ‘Who foots the bill for student safety?’

There should be more law enforcement activity in these locations, especially by arresting drivers running red lights across pedestrian walk ways. Pedestrian traffic is also controlled by the lighting systems and these people speeding through and running red lights at intersection are the biggest hazard.

In non crossing guard locations put out more flags for pedestrians to use crossing the streets. Put more restrictions on driveway access to business along the routes. Some locations that are developed should require installation of sidewalks. Pedestrian can also use bicycle lanes along the roads if necessary.

The danger is real and now that UTA has become a developer agency of the state, akin to the RDA, they are diverting more of their tax funds to development instead of a public transportation service.

The UDOT has too much money too with all the disruptions in pedestrian and traffic flow throughout the valley. I'm sure they could spare some change to help the situation.

Areas that hazardous for students to walk are hazardous for non-students, too. The solution for both groups of users is to install sidewalks and maintain them.

Parents,

It is your responsibility to get your children to school safetly. Don't plan on the school district doing this for you. The budget woes in this school district will be worked out over a few years. In the meantime, make sure your children are safe. It may mean skipping a night out on the town occassionally, or even a family vacation, and will certainly mean some incovenience and rearranging your schedule. But having your children home safely is worth it.

Anyone ever heard of something called a carpool? Or a walking school bus, where a group of kids walk together? Surely that would be safer when crossing a dangerous road.

You all complain but no one wants to pay the taxes to the district to fix the problem. When the schools don't have enough money then everyone suffers.

what's the big deal? I'm fine with having my 6 year old cross Bacchus highway twice and walk a mile to school and back every weekday. I'm sure the cement trucks and semis will slow down and stop for her if she misjudges how fast all the cars are going as she crosses the highway.

carman,

It will take at least a decade for the taxes to work out. It could take even longer. Just carpool if this worries you.

So, where is the Conservative rallying cry of "But what about the children!"?

Conservatives are willing to spend millions (if not billions) of dollars out of their own pockets to protect children from having same-sex parents, or from seeing "inappropriate" movies, or from having classmates that bare too much skin, or from hearing certain words spoken in public, or from numerous other "dangers" -

Come on, Conservatives: here is a real danger kids face. How about ponying up to protect them from this?

Oh wait - physical safety on the way to school is a parental responsibility - Conservatives are only concerned with moral safety.

Besides which, if the kids are killed their souls will be safe from corruption and that is what being a Conservative is all about, right?

This problem hasn't changed in 25 years, my children at the time 2nd grade and kindergarten had to cross 106th. We had a video of cars almost hitting the crossing guard because they were in a hurry. Then they had to walk down State St. along a canal with no fence. We carpooled our children or if both worked, we paid for gas for our children to ride in a carpool.

Why don't the retired people, umemployed, and stay at home moms in the neigborhoods organize and volunteer to help these young kids get to school. It could be done through the LDS wards quite easily. (Pass a list around in Relief Society for the month). Does everything always have to be provided by taxpayer funds???

Good grief!I walked to school for 10 years and knew how to look both ways! If your child can't handle that then drive them. Pretty soon we're going to expect the schools to do potty training!

It is the cities who continue to approve all this construction. Of course it is their responsibility Mayor Johnson. These extra bus routes are NOT required by state law and I, for one, think it is a good budget cut. Parents need to take their own children to school or work with the cities to quit approving so many hazardous construction projects near schools.

See what happens folks when you're not willing to pay more taxes? The burden shifts to the cities. This has always been their responsibility. I'm just glad the school district is finally shifting it back to them.

responding to the article's first lines, any 9th grader can handle this safely

responding to the idea of providing absolute safety to all events all of the time, before we start busing in this instance, call upon the road planners to make a sidewalk, call upon the irrigation ditch owners to fence and otherwise improve their ditch to neighborhood standards (not remote farming), and call upon the trax owners to upgrade the crossing safety with warnings to the train operator, lowered speed, barricades.
this problem developed partly because of long term changes, partly because of blind recent planning

but I do believe that any 9th grader should be able to handle this, they can handle worse, too.

...And where have all these parents been the past few months? This budget cut was announced like three months ago. They should have spoken up then, not after the fact.

Wasn't it the residents of Jordan School District that complained about having their taxes raised?

Well you get what you pay for.....

by the way it called Carpooling that will solve this problem....

This sounds more like inconvenience than safety! Parents don't want their work schedules interrupted.