Parents report unsafe bus stops across Great Neck; district pledges safety inspections within days
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Summary
Several parents described new stop locations they say create unsafe conditions for young children. District leaders said a safety supervisor will visit contested stops within a few business days and asked parents to submit exact locations via an online form.
At a district transportation forum, multiple residents described newly assigned bus stops they said put small children at risk on busy roads or where there are no sidewalks. "This is not a safe situation at all," one parent said of children waiting and crossing on Old Mill Road after a recent route change.
District officials acknowledged the concerns and promised targeted reviews. Dr. Bossa told the room, "Within the next few business days, a safety supervisor will go directly to the stop you are questioning to examine it." Administrators repeated a request that parents enter detailed information in the district's online submission (a Google form accessible via a QR code provided at the forum) so staff can prioritize inspections and respond to each case.
Examples raised at the forum included: Old Mill Road (parents said six children, ages 5—, were left standing and crossing near traffic after a route change), Lakeville Road (parents and students reported narrow margins and high-speed traffic on pedestrian routes to stops), Steamboat/Service Road (construction and lack of sidewalks at a long-standing pickup point), and sections of Northern Boulevard and Russell Garden where residents said traffic patterns make walking to stops hazardous.
What the district said it can and cannot do: officials reminded attendees that state law requires bus stops to be established equally for similarly situated students and that districts are not required to create a "protected corridor" (sidewalks or pathways) from a student's home to a bus stop. The district said it will still review each stop and, where appropriate and feasible within legal limits and operational constraints, relocate or adjust stops. For crossing-guard requests and roadway changes, staff said those remedies typically require county traffic studies and are handled by the county government rather than the school district.
Parents' next steps: the district asked parents with safety concerns to submit exact locations and details through the Google form so safety supervisors can conduct on-site evaluations and report back with findings and any recommended adjustments.
Speakers quoted or described in this article appeared at the Great Neck transportation forum, including several parents and Dr. Bossa (superintendent).