London mom 'frustrated' by drivers speeding past stopped school bus

At just 14 years old, Jen Wild watched her goodpal and bus buddy get struck by a pick-up truck that passed her stoppedschool bus.

It took the 6-year-old boy three years to regain his mobility.

Wild, who now has a daughter only one year older than the crash victim, fears history could one day repeat itself.

The 30-year-old London woman regularly watches two or three cars pass her daughter's stopped bus ignoring the flashing lights and extended bus arm behind her apartment building in the area of Adelaide Street North and Fanshawe Park Road East.

"It's frustrating," said Wild, noting that it happens almost every afternoon she picks up little Emily.

"You see these drivers driving by and they're not even looking at the bus. They're not even noticing this is happening It really makes me angry."

She said it's been happening for the four years she's lived in the area. andsome of the other parents are getting fed up.

"It happens quitefrequently This is crazy. Something has to be done," addedJudith Moore.

Bus stop woes

According to the law, drivers can be charged first offence penalties of up to $2,000 and six demerit points if they pass a stopped school bus.

Wild said drivers need to better understand the consequences and what the law saysin the first place.

"It starts with driver education," she said, noting that provincial and municipal politicians need to speak up about the issue of roadway safety.

She said drivers aren't to blame because they're keeping an eye on the kids.

Wild reached out to a worldwide online parent group to voice her concerns. She said she received more than 100 messages of support, including ones from London parents.

She turned to news media outlets last week with apleato raise awareness to the problem.

It was the same day she had ran out onto the street in a desperate attempt to flag drivers down and tell them to stop for the bus.

"I waved my arms and I shouted 'that's my kid Enough is enough," she said.

Some kids 'scared'

Kids are noticing the speeding cars, too, and some of them are even scared.

"I get scared [I would] get hurt get in a car accident get hit by a car," said Wild's 7-year-old daughter Emily.

"It's not okay because people can get hurt," said 13-year-old Eric Kim.

Even Moore's four-year-old stepson Dominic said "yes" when asked if he noticed the speeding cars.

CBC News videotaped the behaviour of cars around two stopped buses last Thursday. All the cars obeyed the law and stopped. Some parents suggestedit was because the news cameras were rolling.

'The squeakiest wheel gets the oil'

The topic of roadway safety isn't a new one in the London area.

Earlier this year, hundreds of London parents requested extra traffic calming measures near Lord Roberts Public School after observing several "close calls."

Just last week, St. Thomas police charged a driver for failing to stop for a school bus after receiving a complaint.

As for Wild, she can't help but continue to be reminded by what happened to her at 14. The incident has resulted in her tripling checking for speeding cars every time she crosses the road.

And her advocacy for roadway safety isn't going to stop anytime soon despite her lacking the power in numbers, for now.

"In some respects I feel like nobody is going to take any notice of me. I'm just one person.

But, my dad always told me 'if you want to make a change you do it yourself'."

"And the squeakiest wheel gets the oil."