A juvenile cyclist suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries Monday morning after a teen driver pulling into Cherokee Trail High School struck them in the school's entrance crosswalk, according to the Aurora Police Department. Officers responded around 7:45 a.m. to reports of a cyclist involved in a crash near the campus entrance, and the case remains under investigation.
The cyclist was crossing the school entrance crosswalk when the juvenile driver, who was pulling into the high school, struck them, police said. As reported by FOX31 Denver, no citations had been issued at the time of the report, and police have not stated whether both juveniles are students at the school.
Cherokee Trail High School is at its East Arapahoe Road location in southeastern Aurora, according to Wikipedia.
A Pattern of Morning Chaos at the Same Campus
This is not the first time Cherokee Trail's drop-off period has turned dangerous. In May, the school was placed on secure status when a 17-year-old student drove erratically through the parking lot during morning drop-off, struck another vehicle, and fled campus, a case Hoodline covered in its piece on the parking lot scare. That juvenile was later arrested following a standoff with Aurora police.
Staffing pressures have also shaped how closely area high schools are monitored during arrival hours. Back in October 2021, staffing shortages within the Aurora Police Department required the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office to step in and help deploy School Resource Officers to Cherokee Trail and other area high schools, according to CBS News.
What Colorado Law Says About Crosswalk Right-of-Way
Colorado law places specific obligations on drivers approaching crosswalks. Under Colorado Revised Statutes Section 42-4-802, drivers must yield the right-of-way by slowing or stopping for a pedestrian crossing within a crosswalk, per Justia Law. The statute separately states that a person must not suddenly ride a bicycle or walk into the path of a moving vehicle.
Cyclists also carry specific duties under state law. Section 42-4-1412 grants bicyclists the rights and duties of motor vehicle operators, and requires cyclists crossing a roadway within a crosswalk to yield to pedestrians and proceed safely, according to FindLaw. Separately, Colorado's Vulnerable Road User statute, C.R.S. § 42-4-1402.5, makes it a Class 1 traffic misdemeanor for a driver to cause serious bodily injury to a cyclist lawfully using a public right-of-way or crosswalk, carrying penalties that can include driver improvement courses, restitution, and up to 320 hours of community service, according to Bicycle Colorado.
Teen Driving Rules Tighten Ahead of 2027
The crash also lands amid a broader statewide push to rein in risky behavior among Colorado's youngest drivers. The state's Graduated Driver Licensing rules already bar licensed minors from carrying non-family passengers under 21 for their first six months on the road, limit them to one minor passenger for the following six months, and impose a total ban on mobile phone use, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.
Those rules are part of a broader decline in teen fatalities: state materials report a 35% decline in total teen fatalities since 2002. Starting January 1, 2027, House Bill 24-1021 will require all Colorado learner's permit applicants ages 15 through 17 to complete a formal 30-hour driver education course, closing exemptions that previously let older teens skip comprehensive instruction, per the Colorado Department of Revenue.
Part of a Troubling Run for Aurora Cyclists
Monday's crash adds to a string of recent incidents involving cyclists in the Aurora area. In July, a 26-year-old triathlete riding a bicycle in eastern Aurora was killed in an overnight hit-and-run on South Powhaton Road, a case that remains an active Aurora Police Department search for the driver, as Hoodline reported in its coverage of the fatal hit-and-run search. The article also references a separate cyclist crash this month but provides no further details.
No citations had been issued in Monday's crash near Cherokee Trail, and Aurora police have not said whether either juvenile involved attends the school. The investigation remains open as officers work to determine exactly how the driver and cyclist came together in the crosswalk during one of the campus's busiest moments of the day.
