Hawkesbury City Council will convene an urgent meeting with Ebenezer Public School and NSW Government representatives in response to urgent calls for safety improvements for local school children.
Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) rejected Ebenezer Public School P&C Association’s call for a school crossing attendant earlier this year, after it deemed there were not enough children using the area unassisted and not enough traffic to warrant the move.
The school has only 134 children enrolled, but Ebenezer Public School P&C Association secretary, Rochelle Miller, told the September 11 council meeting she had personally witnessed students as young as five years old in danger as they tried to get to school last month, with 12-year-olds attempting to help them.
“They were nearly hit by two vehicles in both directions,” an emotional Ms Miller told the meeting. “Daily, this happens. Daily, parents witness this.”
The P&C screened a video for councillors at the meeting, showing a mother and her two children attempting to cross the road as a ute drives past without slowing or stopping at the markings. Nearby Sackville and Tizzana Roads were rural roads and Ms Miller said there was not enough warning for big vehicles using the area to slow down.
“Drivers appear unaware they need to stop and let the children continue,” she said. “Vehicles do not stop.”
Cr Emma-Jane Garrow moved that council convene a meeting and onsite visit at the school between Hawkesbury MP Dominic Perrottet and school representatives, as well as the RMS, Department of Education, local police and councillors to discuss the safety requests.
Simply because a school had a small population that could not meet preset targets did not mean children should be put at risk, she said.
“The concern for the safety of children attending Ebenezer Public School has been an ongoing issue for this community for over eight years,” she told the meeting.
“Every single child deserves the right to get to and from school safely, whether it is two kids or 200 kids.
“We have to stand up for the kids of this community.”
Issues to be discussed at the meeting include the installation of a pedestrian crossing outside the school on Sackville Road to ensure the safety of children alighting from buses and parked cars, the bus turning bay located at Kolora Road and Ebenezer Park, and a permanent speed camera “particularly targeting the Sackville approach”.
Better signage and lighting on the Tizzana Road entry onto Sackville Road will also be discussed.
