A few years ago, the Sycamore School District made the decision to reduce the number of school bus stops for students living at Olde Montgomery Apartments & Townhomes from at least six that were in existence to only ONE. The location of the sole stop (@ the intersection of Kingslake Drive and Village Drive) has since presented several risks and hardships for members of our community, particularly our children.

• Hundreds of children from grades K-12 live in this sprawling, 56-acre apartment community
• One bus stop is disproportionate to the number of students and the area of land it serves

Most students have to walk a significant distance, or be driven by their parents, to this one bus stop during periods of rush hour traffic. The distance from, and conditions surrounding their travel to, the stop's location pose several risks to their safety:

• Walking to the bus stop is DANGEROUS for children and parents who live in areas of our community where there are no sidewalks (7810-7882 Village Drive and 10801-10833 Lake Thames Drive) . These addresses are also the furthest in proximity of the bus stop.
• The walking distance is DANGEROUS for children and parents during inclement or severe weather. On such days, they must endure unnecessary, prolonged exposure to extreme temperatures and/or elements. They are also put at risk by the visibility of drivers, which may be impaired during rain or snow

In addition, the location of the bus stop is a hardship to the commuters on the property.

• Located at the central intersection of the community, approximately 2/3 of our residents, plus all visitors to the management & leasing office, must travel through the intersection for ingress and egress.
• Once for student pick up and again for student drop off, the number of times the intersection is shut down per day is at least TWELVE to serve the am & pm kindergarten, elementary, middle, junior high, and high schools.
• When this location was one of many stops throughout the property, the time to load/unload students was minimal.
• Serving as the ONLY bus stop, however, the volume of students who get on and off the buses dramatically increases the length of time the intersection is shut down per occurrence.
• The volume of parents and children surrounding the buses, the amount of time it takes them to disperse and move out of the way of drivers, further prolongs the intersection shut down.

Their website states:

"Sycamore Community Schools’ Transportation Department is proud to be a part of each student’s school experience and is deeply committed to the safety of each child in the community."

While it may be within the law to only have one bus stop serving this property, the practice contradicts the department's stated commitment to child safety.

PLEASE HELP US MAKE A CHANGE!

Since the installation of this one bus stop a few years ago, the Olde Montgomery management team has made several efforts to reach decision makers at the Sycamore School Transportation Department to implore them to reinstate the multiple bus stops they once had throughout the property.

We have not been able to get past the gatekeepers answering their phones to speak to anyone who might listen to our case and consider our request.

THIS IS WHAT WE ARE DOING:

• We have emailed all of the above information to both the Director of Transportation and the Superintendent of the entire school district.
• We have formally asked them to at least consider reinstating the old bus stops which would better serve our community and reduce the threat to the safety of our children.
• We put them on notice that we have asked all of our residents and other interested parties to sign a petition to the same effect and anticipate between 500-1000 signatures.

THIS IS WHAT YOU CAN DO:

• Sign this petition today.
• Have everyone in your household sign this petition.
• Encourage your neighbors to sign this petition.
• Whether you have children who ride a bus to school or not, if you live at Olde Montgomery or drive through Olde Montgomery, this issue most likely affects you too.
• Help us raise awareness with Sycamore Schools so they understand how important this matter is and how many people it affects.

LET'S WORK TOGETHER TO KEEP OUR KIDS SAFE...

Your voice matters.

PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION TODAY.