EMMETT, Idaho — Several parents are concerned for their children's safety as they walk to school earlier in the morning with very little to no light.
- School now starts an hour earlier making it dark when kids walk to school.
- A student was hit on Dec. 2 with no serious injuries.
- Kids are encouraged to wear lights, reflectors, or brighter colors.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
When Emmett schools switched to 4-day school weeks, Carberry Elementary’s start time moved from 8:30 am to 8:00 am, leaving students with a dark morning commute in the winter. I've had several parents reach out to me expressing concerns about student safety, especially after a child was hit in this intersection.
"This year is a little different because we went to a four-day week, so school starts a half hour earlier," said Principal Greg Alexander.
Emmett parents are worried about student safety with an earlier start time sending students commuting with very little light if any at all.
I spent Tuesday morning checking out the early morning traffic and stopped to talk with many concerned parents like Chrystal Whiteley.
Whiteley exclaimed, "Even though my 4th grader is old enough to walk to school, it's not safe."
"The problem comes when people are just in a hurry. They are thinking about their day. They have a lot on their mind, a lot on their plate. They feel a little overloaded or stressed, and they are not taking care of each other," explained Johnny Murphree.
Just last week, police confirmed a student was hit by a car while on his way to school.
Principal Alexander sighed saying, "In this case, the student that was hit, he did everything right."
Police tell me, that while some cars stopped to allow the student to cross Substation Road, another car decided to go around and hit the student.
"They say any time there is a person behind the wheel, there is a chance of a problem," shrugged Principal Alexander.
Principal Alexander tells me the child was not seriously injured and was able to return to school that day, and according to Emmett Police, the driver was cited with reckless driving.
Whiteley continued, "But it's not even when it is dark. I've almost been hit during the day picking up my kid from school."
Principal Alexander said they have volunteer crossing guards but only in the afternoon as there is much more foot traffic compared to the mornings.
But what about police presence? The department tells me, that due to a staffing shortage, they don't have enough officers to watch every school at the same time.
The chief encourages drivers to slow down, be aware, and wait for the crosswalk to completely clear before continuing.
For those students who do have to walk to school, it's a good idea to wear some sort of light, reflector, or even just brightly-colored clothes to help them be spotted more easily.
