Bus stop pickup & drop-off locations near construction cause concern for parents

After hearing about a child being hit by an SUV in the Lehigh Acres, parents in Fort Myers called Fox 4, wanting to know what they could do to make school bus stops safer than the district's legal responsibility.

Your Fort Myers community correspondent, Miyoshi Price, has spoken to parents for weeks about their concerns with bus stops near construction sites.

They were also concerned about the wee hours of the morning pick-ups and low visibility.

Fox 4 spoke to Sharetha Davis before the 2024 Fall school year started in a previous school bus update story. Davis is a parent of two children and lives near Ortiz and Mina Circle. She did not want her two children standing on the side of the road to get picked up.

We shared those concerns with the district, and Miyoshi Price stood at that location waiting for a bus to arrive to see if the changes were made to the pickup location.

Fast forward, the district made noticable changes, dropping students in a safer location than before.

Mina Circle was one of several places where construction took place; there were no sidewalks and a lot of speeding traffic.

A district spokesperson told Fox 4 parents should report sites with construction that cause concerns.

A safety team will review the stop and ensure it meets state guidelines. Temporary changes can be made.

Miyoshi Price met a woman who drives a road like Ortiz Road daily and sees children right next to the road getting ready to be picked up for school in the morning.

"It would be nice if they had somewhere to sit," says Tammy Goodwin, a resident. "It would make them stay off the road and more visible to drivers, so I think it would be a really good idea to have benches or chairs or something for them to sit while they’re waiting for the bus."

The district representative says he understands that not every family can wait with their child at the bus stop.

However, they encourage parents to work with relatives, friends, and neighbors to ensure that students have adults around.