JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A new crosswalk is in the works outside First Coast High School, five days after a freshman student was struck by a pickup truck while crossing Duval Station Road on his way to class.
A traffic study of the area is being conducted after the teen was hit. It hasn't been completed, but researchers have already said they see the need for a crosswalk. The city of Jacksonville also plans to connect the sidewalks near the school.
The study is expected to be completed in the next three weeks.
Some students said changes should have been made awhile ago and are happy the issue is being addressed. Tiffany Clark, whose son is a senior at First Coast High, decided something needed to be done last fall.
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Clark said the traffic study was the result of a walk-through she had with the school's principal, a city traffic engineer and a city representative.
"We looked at the lack of pedestrian crossings, the lighting, children coming on and off the campus, parents driving in and out of the school, and then we also were able to see that the speed was not being controlled very well," Clark said.
According to Clark, the city employees were shocked by the findings. Researchers involved in the study are also determining whether to adjust the existing speed limits in the area.
"It is imperative they reduce that speed limit so we do not have any additional incidents," Clark said.
News4Jax is waiting to learn when work on the crosswalk will begin, but Clark hopes it's before the end of the school year.