Parents want a crosswalk and other traffic calming measures added to Old Frederick Road to improve pedestrian safety.  At the present time, there are limited sidewalks on Old Frederick Road, and no way to "safely" cross the street  at the school, due to a lack of a crosswalk and other pedestrian safety measures. 

As the demographics of the surrounding neighborhoods have changed, so has the traffic pattern.  There is a significant amount of traffic on Old Frederick Road, especially during peak times in the morning and afternoon. Traffic backs up during pick-up and drop-off times in the morning and afternoon, at the school, which makes crossing the road particularly unsafe during those times.  Backed up traffic between the school and Edmondson Avenue causes impatient drivers and buses to cross the yellow lines,  driving illegally on the wrong side of the road to bypass traffic, which is endangering the safety of those crossing the street.  It is rare that vehicles will stop to give pedestrians the right of way to cross the street. 

There are crosswalks at or near all other elementary schools in the area including: Catonsville, Hillcrest, Woodbridge, Westowne, Johnnycake and Edmondson Heights. At those crosswalks, a crossing guard is provided to assist children across the street.  The Children at Westchester Elementary School deserve to have the same rights!  Pedestrian safety should be a priority at this school as well. 

The Parents in the community would like to see immediate action taken and have a crosswalk installed, with pedestrian safety signs, perhaps a crossing guard and/or a police officer , and any other immediate traffic calming measures that will increase the safety of those crossing the street. It's not only our children and parents getting to and from Westchester Elementary, but also other children that have bus stops at Westchester to transport them to other schools.  

Adding a crosswalk, and other pedestrian safety measures will also increase the likelihood that more children will then take advantage of the opportunity to walk/bike to and from school.

Further, we believe a study may be warranted by the traffic engineer of Baltimore County to determine what long term measures can be implemented, such as sidewalks on Old Frederick Road and/or Devere Lane to make it safe for walkers and bike riders alike to get to and from school, making our community a safer place. 

Parents in the community want to see the County take proactive measures before something tragic happens.