WESTLAND, Mich. (WXYZ) — For the second time in less than a year, a John Glenn High School student has been hit while crossing the intersection at Newburgh and Marquette.
Last December, a high school girl was seriously injured after being hit by a car while crossing the intersection. On Thursday, another student was struck by a car and the driver kept on going.
According to the police, that student will be okay.
Parents like Sue Pietruska are worried other students could be hurt if changes aren’t made to the intersection.
"They need to have cameras,” said Pietruska. “I feel cameras are very important like by the crosswalk like that one obviously is going to be a major problem.”
This recent accident has residents who live close to the intersection worried too.
“It’s something I’ve been concerned with for quite a while and I was actually going to bring it up with some of the neighbors… asking if they had any thoughts about, about possibly petitioning the city to install pedestrian signals, buttons so you can have the light can be activated if you need to cross.”
I reached out to the mayor of Westland, Michael Landeau, to see if the city has plans to address the safety of the crosswalk.
He sent a statement saying in part:
“Upon hearing of yesterday’s incident, I instructed the Chief of Police to have patrol vehicles stationed at this intersection during the high volume commute times…. We are also exploring the potential of pursuing a crossing guard via our partnership with Wayne Westland Community Schools which are currently deployed for our elementary school locations. “
Sue Pietruska says she hopes these changes come sooner rather than later.
“Safety is a big concern. You don’t have to worry about just strangers anymore. You have to worry about the way people are driving.”
Westland Police are still investigating the latest hit and run. If you have any information that would help identify the driver, contact the police.
