Traffic And Pedestrian Safety Review Sought By Fairfax School Board

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — Amid school traffic and pedestrian safety concerns around schools, Fairfax County School Board members are asking for an annual review prioritizing schools for safety improvements.

On Thursday night, the School Board unanimously voted to seek an annual School Traffic and Pedestrian Safety Assessment Program from the superintendent. The report, sought in a motion by Providence District representative Karl Frisch and Sully District representative Stella Pekarsky, seeks to address safety concerns from congested school queue lines, bus traffic and other issues.

"From Oakton and Vienna to Tysons and Falls Church, school communities across the county face significant road and pedestrian safety concerns that too often result in tragedy," said Frisch. "This proposal is the first step in developing an annual comprehensive plan to prioritize and address these critical concerns."

"There is nothing more important to me as a mother and school board member than the safety of our students," added Pekarsky. "This proposal proactively addresses the increase in school traffic and pedestrian safety incidents in our neighborhoods and keeps everyone safe near our schools."

The annual review will examine schools with the most pressing road safety needs, safety mitigation measures, timelines to implement improvements, and updates on past mitigation projects. The program is envisioned as mirroring the school district's Capital Improvement Program method for addressing school capacity shortfalls.

"It will make it easier for our board and the communities we represent to monitor progress and for our hardworking facilities and transportation staff to collaborate with [Virginia Department of Transportation], [Fairfax County Department of Transportation], [Fairfax County Police Department] and the Board of Supervisors," said Frisch at Thursday's school board meeting.

One of the incidents that has drawn county action was a crash that killed two Oakton High School students and injured another on Blake Lane not far from the school. The June 2022 crash involved a driver reportedly speeding when the vehicle hit the students walking on the sidewalk.

Another student pedestrian death happened away from school. In November, a high school student was struck by a vehicle and killed in a crosswalk on Columbia Pike in Bailey's Crossroads.

Fairfax County as a whole had seen a jump in pedestrian deaths in 2022. According to Virginia DMV data, there were 32 pedestrian deaths in Fairfax County last year, up from 14 in 2021.

One measure taken by the Board of Supervisors was a speed camera pilot program recently introduced in eight school zones. The county is also planning a school zone speed camera for Oakton High School on Blake Lane near Sutton Road and a work zone speed camera on Route 28 near Old Mill Road. After the six-month pilot program, the county plans to add more speed camera locations.