Three kids were struck by vehicles in three years at the same intersection. That’s three too many for Eatonville Mayor Tom Smallwood and other residents of the town.
The mayor asked a state transportation official last week to evaluate what can be done to improve the intersection of Center Street and Highway 161, also known as Washington Avenue. Center approaches Washington at a slight angle, which affects visibility.
The latest accident happened the afternoon of Jan. 29 when an Eatonville school bus turning left from Washington hit a 14-year-old boy as he walked across Center. The ninth-grader was hospitalized with broken bones and internal injuries, but has since been released.
“It was a miracle, I tell you,” said Eatonville Schools Superintendent Ray Arment. “It was very scary for me to walk up to that scene.”
Eatonville police are investigating the accident, and the school district has placed the 65-year-old driver on administrative leave pending the outcome.
That same week, the district settled a lawsuit from another accident involving a school bus that hit a student at the same intersection three years ago.
In that case, an Eatonville High School senior was crossing Washington in a marked crosswalk Jan. 6, 2006, when she was struck by the bus, said Dennis LaPorte, the teen’s attorney.
The bus drove over the girl’s left leg and dragged her 52 feet before her younger brother, who was outside the bus, got the driver’s attention to stop, LaPorte said. The victim, now 20, can walk but has permanent injuries to her leg, the lawyer said.
Neither LaPorte nor Arment would disclose the amount of the settlement, though LaPorte said it was “significant.”
In the third accident, a boy suffered minor injuries after he was struck by a pickup several months ago, Smallwood said.
In response to Smallwood’s request, state transportation staff are studying police reports of the three vehicle-pedestrian accidents to see if the intersection needs to be modified, said Dick Egolf, an engineer in the Department of Transportation.
“We want to work with the city and provide a safe environment for the kids,” Egolf said. “We want to find a solution that will work.”
Smallwood said police in the 2,400-resident town have studied the intersection since the most recent accident. They’ve found that drivers don’t always yield the right of way to pedestrians, and that some people step into the street without looking.
The intersection has a four-way flashing red light and a 25-mph speed limit on Washington, Smallwood said. Since it’s a state highway, the state would have to approve any changes or improvements, he added.
Smallwood said he wants the state to install a second light that would flash when pedestrians push a button to activate it.
The town has long-term plans to install red-green-and-yellow traffic signals and widen the intersection, if it can secure the funding. The original motivation was to handle additional traffic from a prospective housing development.
In the meantime, Arment said the district is obtaining a traffic safety curriculum from the state, and plans to teach students about the proper way to use sidewalks and crosswalks. Police plan a “traffic emphasis” this week at the intersection, where they’ll be present to ensure that pedestrians and drivers follow traffic laws, Smallwood said.
“Obviously, with three people being hit, there’s something wrong,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of good community support for getting something done.”
Debby Abe: 253-597-8694
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