WEST SENECA, N.Y. (WKBW) — Before school begins, one West Seneca West student is hard at work, pushing for change to make roads safer for him and his classmates.
"I haven't necessarily seen accidents, but I know that they are possible, and I would rather stop something before it happens," said Richie Schack, who will be a senior this fall.
The problem is the intersection at Ridge Road and Seneca Street, just up the street from the high school.
- There's a Tim Horton's, Mighty Taco and pizza shop all nearby where students like to go after school
- There are no crosswalks or sidewalks at the intersection
- Students get out at 1:30, close to rush hour
Schack collected signatures on a petition to make his community safer, it got the attention of Assemblyman Pat Burke.
"We do this all the time, we wait for tragedies to happen and we say, 'Who let that happen?' Well, we're not letting it happen," said Burke.
It's a county road and the town runs the traffic signals, so it'll take a group effort to get things done. They met on August 21.
With help from GoBike Buffalo, the plan is:
- Change traffic signals between 1:30 - 3:00 p.m. to go all red when students hit a button to cross
- Adding sidewalks
- Adding a median in the middle of the road
No word on when this work will begin, but Burke says it wouldn't be possible without Schack sounding the alarm.
"I'm so grateful to see the safety of our town grow," said Schack.
