School bus – pedestrian collision prompts review of intersection

More than two weeks after being struck by a school bus Olivia Linseman was still having a hard time crossing the street at the Tollgate Road and Ewing Drive intersection in Brantford.

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The bruises were still coming out on her legs and the trauma remains raw.

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“I’m sorry,” Linseman said wiping away tears after being escorted across Tollgate Road to make her way home. “I thought I could handle it.

“I guess I still need some more time.”

Linseman returned to the intersection last week to talk to an Expositor reporter about a collision in hopes something will be done about the intersection she believes to be dangerous.

“I can’t remember the date,” Linseman said. “But I know it was a Tuesday morning and I was walking my daughter and another four-year-old to school.

“I had three others – a one-year-old, a two-year-old and a three-year-old – in a wagon.”

The collision with a mini school bus occurred while they were crossing the street. Linseman took the brunt of the contact.

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Linseman said the children received bumps, bruises and scrapes, which have since healed. But they were having nightmares and are worried about being hit by another vehicle or school bus.

“It’s a busy intersection and it’s a bad intersection,” Linseman said. “It’s a three-way stop but vehicles don’t always stop.”

As if on cue, while speaking with a reporter, a vehicle on Tollgate Road heading towards Paris Road drove through the intersection oblivious to the stop sign. Moments later, a driver turning right from Ewing to Tollgate to head towards Paris Road slowed down but didn’t stop before turning.

“Something has to be done,” Linseman said. “I don’t know if we need to have police out here to make people slow down or if we need a crossing guard.

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“But there are a couple of schools in the area and there’s a lot of traffic. I just hope someone will at least take a look at it and see if something can be done.”

Ecole Confederation is about a block away from the intersection and Linseman said the area is extremely busy in the morning with kids arriving at school and at the end of the school day when kids are leaving.

Representatives of the Grand Erie District School Board and the Brantford Police Service confirmed an incident took place on the morning of Sept. 19 at the Ewing Drive and Tollgate Road intersection.

“Board staff have been in touch with the City of Brantford and Brantford Police Service, which will be conducting a review of the area,” Jenny Gladish, a communications officer with the Grand Erie board, said. “We welcome any additional safety and traffic-calming measures, such as a crossing guard at this particular location.”

Robin Matthews-Osmond, corporate communications manager for Brantford police, said a bus driver has been charged with failing to yield to pedestrians on a roadway under the Highway Traffic Act.

Told that the school board is reviewing the intersection, Linseman said Friday she feels a sense of relief. Most, but not all, of the bruises are now gone.

“I really hope something can be done,” Linseman said. “I wouldn’t want anything like this to happen to anyone else.”

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