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ABC News
19 hours ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Boy hit by car outside St Edmund's College petitions for pedestrian overpass on Canberra Avenue
A teenage boy who was seriously injured when he was hit by a car while walking to school has called for an overpass to be constructed over the road where he was hit. St Edmund's College students Aiden Stuart and Aaron Way were hit by the allegedly stolen car while on the median strip of Canberra Avenue on the morning of March 28. Six weeks after the almost-fatal incident, the ACT government announced it would install a new traffic light pedestrian crossing on the road. But Aiden and his mother, Nektaria Stuart, are concerned that solution will not offer enough protection, so they are petitioning the ACT Legislative Assembly to construct a pedestrian bridge over the road instead. Ms Stuart said that while what happened to her son was "a freak accident", it could easily happen again. "They walked the footpath from Kingston from the bus stop, they stopped on the median strip — they were a metre off the road when he came off the road towards them. "If some person who doesn't want to be a decent human being wakes up [and] gets behind a wheel, that's going to happen again if those children are on that road." Ms Stuart said to see an overpass constructed in response to the petition would be wonderful. Independent MLA Thomas Emerson, who is sponsoring the petition, said the government needed to act on the community's concerns. "[Aiden said], 'Look, a pedestrian lights crossing wouldn't have saved me, so what if something like that happens again and we end up with a death, or we end up with another serious injury?'" he said. "He's calling for an overpass, it looks like a sensible solution. And if it's a question of funds, then we've got to talk about priorities." Mr Emerson said there had been "clear calls" for a footbridge over the area for the last 30 years. "It is concerning — and we've heard that from the principal of St Edmund's College, we've heard it from St Clare's College, and the entire school community around them. "When you've got clear calls for action, you've got to really respect those and listen to those." The ACT government has been contacted for comment.
ABC News
12-05-2025
- Automotive
- ABC News
New pedestrian crossing announced after St Edmund's College students hit by allegedly stolen car
The father of a boy, who was almost killed after being hit by a car while walking to school, has praised attempts to make the school commute safer as a "really good starting point". Teenagers Aiden Stuart and Aaron Way were struck by an allegedly stolen car on Canberra Avenue while walking to St Edmund's College in Griffith on March 28. Joshua Way was treating Aiden's injuries when he found out his son, Aaron, was also a victim. He said the road was always dangerous. "It was pretty wild," Mr Way said. "The speeds that some people come off that roundabout at [are] just dangerous." Aiden remains in hospital. Aaron spent 13 days in hospital, still cannot bend his fingers, and has a scar along his forearm. Six weeks after the almost-fatal incident, the ACT government announced the installation of a new pedestrian crossing on Canberra Avenue near Burke Crescent, pending approval from the National Capital Authority. Mr Way said the announcement was "a really good starting point". Aiden Stuart's triplet brother, Bryce, said crossing Canberra Avenue every morning for school was always dangerous. "It's pretty scary … It is busy and packed. It can take ages to cross it," Bryce said. He said he was hoping his brother would be well enough to leave hospital this week. College principal Tim Cleary said the road crossing was a constant source of anxiety for parents. "I sort of hold my breath and watch them all cross the road," Mr Cleary told the ABC after the crash. "Boys have got less than eight seconds to cross two lanes of traffic." Mr Cleary said while the proposed crossing could not have prevented that crash, the announcement was "overdue" on one of the busiest and most dangerous arterial roads in Canberra. He said the proposed crossing would only stop traffic when pedestrians needed to cross. "This outcome is a win-win for everyone," he said. Across the road, St Clare's College principal Dr Ann Cleary said parents were driving their children to school so they wouldn't have to cross the thoroughfare. "The parents worry about that every day. So the crossing goes a long way to alleviate that worry." However, Dr Cleary said the school wanted more to be done — including a 40-kilometre speed limit outside the school during school hours. "There are plenty of Canberra roads that are disrupted at any point in time that are arterial roads." However, ACT Minister for City Services Tara Cheyne, who is responsible for road safety in the ACT, said that while all options were on the table, the proposed crossing would "have the biggest impact in terms of pedestrian safety without compromising traffic movement overall". She said the speed limit would not be reduced. "It's an arterial road," Ms Cheyne said. "The speed limit is contributing to how much traffic needs to pass through there. "The safest thing that can occur is for traffic to come to a complete stop when students are trying to cross the road." However, Living Streets Canberra convenor Gill King disagrees. She pointed to Pennant Hills Road in Sydney, which carries up to 60,000 vehicles each day and still has 40kph speed limits during school drop-off hours. Ms Gill is leading a campaign for all roads within two kilometres of schools in the ACT to have 30kph speed limits. If speed limits weren't reduced, Ms King said convenient pedestrian-priority crossings had to be installed. "It's a great start but we've got a long way to go," she said.
