PGCPS subgroup urges unified walk-audit program and cross-agency coordination

Pamela Buser Struthers, board member for District 3 and chair of the subgroup, said the group's top finding should be adoption of a unified walk-audit process to identify and prioritize pedestrian-safety needs around schools. "I would say just go ahead and keep it because I think the sentiments... captured one of our big needs is the unified walk audit," she said.

Members agreed the subgroup should record existing proactive coordination and newly created positions so the report reflects actions already underway, not only proposed future steps. Sharoskar Coleman, chief operating officer for Prince George's County Public Schools, described two new safe passage coordinator positions intended to "assist with the proactive coordination with county government agencies around this notion of pedestrian safety." Coleman warned the system should build internal capacity and standardized tools before committing to ambitious annual audit targets.

The subgroup also emphasized multi-agency collaboration. Irv Beckert recommended a first-step accessibility evaluation that includes municipal governments and the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration because "the vast majority of those pedestrian fatalities occur on state facilities." The subgroup will consolidate its recommendations in a Word document and present them to the full work group at the Sept. 6 meeting.