After two students were struck by cars on Baseline Road, Lafayette community members are taking matters into their own hands and helping students cross the street through the Indian Peaks Crosswalk Action team.

On the afternoon of Sept. 5, a Nevin Platt Middle School student was hit by a car while crossing Baseline Road at the King Street crosswalk after being dropped off by an RTD bus. The next morning, Sept. 6, a Centaurus student riding a bicycle was hit less than half-a-mile east at the Roser Drive crosswalk.

Kaye Krebs, who has been helping to organize the action team, said the Indian Peaks neighborhood is working hard to ensure the safety of pedestrians.

“All of us are impacted by this, all of our children going and coming from this neighborhood,” Krebs said.

The Indian Peaks Crosswalk Action team was out on Baseline Road by the afternoon of Sept. 6 to help grab the attention of drivers as students crossed the road. During the time of both incidents, the flashing crosswalk signal was working, but parents are taking to the street to ensure that drivers are slowing down and allowing students to safely cross the street.

The team is composed of parent volunteers who live in the Indian Peaks neighborhood and are taking action by putting on safety vests and waving flags to help students cross Baseline Road.

Krebs hosted a neighborhood meeting in her house following the incidents and has been organizing community members to help volunteer for the crosswalk patrol.Kristin Zangrilli, a volunteer for the action team, was trying to turn back into her neighborhood on Sept. 5 when she saw that parts of Baseline Road were blocked off. She assumed it was a car crash, but it was not until later that she slowly pieced together that a student got hit after being dropped off by the RTD bus.

“The next morning my children are afraid to go to the bus,” Zangrilli said.

Zangrilli said parents still want their kids to have freedom and be able to travel independently but are scared of the danger the road presents.

“This isn’t just about the children, this is about anyone who has to traverse this road,” Zangrilli said.

Crosswalk volunteers would not comment on the status of the children who were struck last week.

She said that while she can instruct her daughter to be as safe as possible on the road and grab the attention of drivers before crossing the street, the drivers also have to take some responsibility and slow down.

According to a Friday news release, the Lafayette Police Department has charged the drivers in both incidents.

Parents have spoken with Mayor J.D. Mangat and Mayor Pro Tem Brian Wong, Chief of Police Rick Bashor and city traffic engineers to discuss ways to improve pedestrian safety on the road.

While many ideas have been floating around on how to improve safety, such as speed bumps or radar signs, Zangrilli said she and other parents are in favor of High Intensity Activated Crosswalk signs. The sign is a traffic signal light that flashes red and only activates when a pedestrian pushes the button to cross the road.

Krebs said the yellow flashing lights at the current crosswalk are not doing a good enough job of getting drivers to slow down and keeping pedestrians safe. Zangrilli said the flashing red light would tell drivers to stop, rather than seeing a flashing yellow light that only tells drivers to slow down.

Krebs said while residents have already spoken with city and Boulder Valley School District officials, no one plans to stop working together until students can confidently and safely cross the road.

“We all just need to keep pushing. We don’t do this for a little time and give up,” Krebs said.

The Indian Peaks Crosswalk Action page on Facebook, only available for Indian Peaks neighborhood residents, is where neighbors have been going to sign up to volunteer. More information is available by emailing ipcrosswalkaction@gmail.com.

The corridor on Baseline will have increased police patrols with increased ticketing for speeding and traffic violations, according to the Lafayette news release. Mobile message boards were also placed on Baseline Road on Thursday, to help remind drivers to be mindful of pedestrians.