A 14-year-old was struck by a car while crossing a foggy stretch of highway to reach a school bus stop in Sevier County early Monday morning, sending the teen to the hospital and prompting local officials to take a fresh look at the crossing. The crash happened at the intersection of State Route 119 and Black Knolls Road, where a westbound passenger car driven by a 16-year-old hit the pedestrian as they tried to get to the bus stop on the intersection's southeast side.
According to midutahradio.com, the driver said darkness and heavy fog made it impossible to see the student crossing the road. Per the sheriff's release, as reported by KJZZ, the driver tried to swerve left after spotting the teen in the roadway, crossed the center line and briefly left the pavement on the left side before the passenger side of the vehicle sideswiped the student. The driver was not exceeding the speed limit at the time of the crash, the same release states.
Just before 7:30 a.m. Monday, Sevier County deputies responded to the scene along with EMS, Utah Highway Patrol and Richfield City Police, the station's report notes. The student was conscious when EMS crews transported them to Sevier Valley Hospital, and they were later taken to Primary Children's Hospital for further care, per the same account. No other injuries were reported from the crash.
District and Sheriff's Office Review the Crossing
In the aftermath, the Sevier County Sheriff's Office said it is working with the Sevier School District to review the bus stop in the area and determine whether changes can be made for safer routing, the article notes. The Sheriff's Office also encouraged motorists to slow down along bus routes and use extra caution whenever visibility is limited.
No details have been released on what, if any, changes might ultimately be adopted or when a decision might come. The district's own rider safety guidance, published by Sevier School District, instructs students to arrive at their bus stop five minutes before scheduled pickup and to stand on a sidewalk or back from the roadway while they wait. The same guidance tells students who must cross a road to check both directions and walk directly across.
Visibility and Bus-Stop Design Are National Concerns
Fog and darkness are recurring hazards cited in national guidance on school transportation safety. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration notes that selecting safer bus stops and routes requires weighing not just the physical characteristics of a stop, but also student behavior, travel paths to and from the stop, and the path of the bus route itself, according to NHTSA. The agency's broader guide on planning safer bus stops, updated in 2022, was built specifically to account for pedestrian paths alongside bus routing decisions.
Utah's own rules reinforce caution around buses themselves. State guidance from the Utah Department of Public Safety specifies that motorists must stop and wait until a school bus's red lights stop flashing and its stop arm is withdrawn before driving again, the agency states. Separately, Utah guidance on school transportation eligibility notes that the state board of education may approve shorter distances between bus stops when student safety is a concern, according to a filing from Utah.gov.
The circumstances of Monday's crash remain under review, and officials have not said whether any changes to the Black Knolls Road stop have been finalized.
