FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — Parents, students and road-safety advocates plan to rally Tuesday at the Fairfax County Government Center to demand the restoration of high school crossing guards and other safety improvements after a series of crashes involving Fairfax County Public Schools students.
The Rally for Safe Roads and School Crossing Guards is scheduled for 10 a.m. Sept. 15 outside the Government Center. Hunter Mill District School Board Member Melanie Meren organized the event ahead of a Fairfax County Board of Supervisors public hearing scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.
Later that day, supervisors are expected to decide how to allocate leftover funding from fiscal year 2026, with permanently restoring funding for high school crossing guards and other safety measures among the options.
The rally comes after a troubling start to the school year that has put renewed attention on how students travel to and from Fairfax County schools.
"Dangerous and congested roads plague Fairfax County, and the elected Board of Supervisors made it even worse by removing high school crossing guards," Meren said in announcing the rally. "The first weeks of this school year have painfully shown that ultimately, urgency is needed to upgrade road safety for all Fairfax County residents, especially kids."
"We have the resources," Meren added. "It's the political will to keep children safe that has long been absent."
The issue took on new urgency Sept. 9, when three FCPS students were involved in separate incidents with vehicles while riding bicycles or scooters, according to Superintendent Michelle Reid.
One of the students, a 13-year-old riding a bicycle, was killed after being struck by a large truck in Fairfax City.
City of Fairfax Police responded around 2:30 p.m. to the 3900 block of Pickett Road. Police said preliminary information indicated the truck was leaving a shopping center when it struck the student. The student suffered life-threatening injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.
RELATED: FCPS Student Killed In Fairfax City Crash As Superintendent Urges Road Safety
The student was commuting home from Frost Middle School, according to Meren's announcement.
Fairfax City Police and the Fairfax County Police Department's Crash Reconstruction Unit are investigating the fatal crash.
In a divisionwide letter that evening, Reid revealed that the fatal crash was one of three incidents involving FCPS students and vehicles that day.
"Tragically, one of these incidents resulted in the death of one of our middle school students," Reid wrote. "My heart is with the student's family, friends, classmates, teachers, and the entire school community as we confront this heartbreaking loss."
Fairfax County Police have since provided Patch with details about the other two incidents.
At approximately 8:20 a.m. Sept. 9, officers responded to the 4200 block of Lees Corner Road in Chantilly for a minor crash involving an 11-year-old riding an electric scooter, police said.
A vehicle turning into a school parking lot made minimal contact with the student's scooter while she was in a crosswalk. The student was able to jump off the scooter and was not struck by the vehicle. She was evaluated as a precaution and was not injured, according to police.
Later that afternoon, at 3:20 p.m., officers responded to Toll House Road and Country Lane in Annandale for a crash involving a 13-year-old bicyclist and a vehicle. The student suffered minor injuries and was taken to a hospital for evaluation.
Police said the Annandale crash did not occur near a school or school crossing.
Reid used her letter to ask the entire FCPS community to consider what it could do to protect students.
"Whether we are behind the wheel, walking, biking, riding a scooter, waiting for a bus, or simply moving through a busy school parking lot, each of us has an important role to play in keeping our community safe," Reid wrote.
Another FCPS student was injured in a bicycle crash the following afternoon near Lake Braddock Secondary School.
Fairfax County Police said officers responded around 2:55 p.m. Monday to the intersection of Burke Road and Burke Lake Drive for a crash involving a juvenile bicyclist and a vehicle.
The student suffered minor injuries and was not taken to a hospital, police said. The driver remained at the scene and cooperated with officers.
The incident occurred near Lake Braddock Secondary School. Fairfax County's current school-zone speed-camera expansion plans include a camera on Burke Lake Road serving Lake Braddock Secondary.
The recent incidents follow another crash involving an FCPS student during the first week of school.
A 16-year-old student was struck by a vehicle while walking to South Lakes High School in Reston just before 8 a.m. Aug. 31. The student was taken to a hospital with minor injuries. The driver remained at the scene and was later charged with failure to stop before entering a highway.
RELATED: Crossing Guards Are Coming Back To 10 Fairfax County High Schools
Meren, who opposed eliminating the guards, had been observing traffic conditions outside South Lakes during the first week of school.
Following the South Lakes crash, crossing guards and police officers were returned to 11 locations serving 10 county high schools while officials considered longer-term solutions.
The Board of Supervisors also discussed the crossing guard issue at a Sept. 1 committee meeting, including the possibility of using year-end funding to restore the positions permanently.
The county's decision to eliminate high school crossing guards was made during the fiscal year 2027 budget process. The issue also became the subject of a political dispute earlier this year after Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay referred to Meren as a "bimbo" while discussing her criticism of the crossing guard cuts.
Meren said she has heard from hundreds of adults and students concerned about the crossing guard cuts and broader road-safety problems.
"People are angry and want leaders to do their jobs to maintain safety services in Fairfax County," Meren said. "At the very least, it's restoring crossing guards at high schools. But there's much more work needed to establish safer roadways that are designed to prevent fatalities."
RELATED: Fairfax Chairman Apologizes After Calling School Board Member A 'Bimbo'
Meren said she expects a large turnout for both the rally and subsequent public hearing.
The Rally for Safe Roads and School Crossing Guards is scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15, at the Fairfax County Government Center, 12000 Government Center Parkway in Fairfax. The Board of Supervisors public hearing is scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.
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