Traffic Safety Changes Coming After Incidents At Wayzata High School

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- School and city administrators are making changes to improve traffic safety at the state's largest high school.

Two students were hit by vehicles outside Wayzata High School in separate incidents in the last month. The first victim had to be airlifted to the hospital, while the other had minor injuries.

Both students were struck in the intersection of Schmidt Lake Road and Peony Lane at the school's entrance. Within five minutes of school being let out Wednesday, there was a minor accident involving two vehicles.

"It's kind of scary to be honest, there is a lot of action going on," freshman Brynne Crystal said.

Plymouth police are asking nearby officers to patrol the area during drop-off and pick-up hours, and to enforce any traffic violations. The high school has rerouted student athletes to avoid the busy intersection, and sent out reminders to students and parents to slow down.

There is also a possibility of bringing in a third party engineer to analyze the intersection, according to police.

"We're going to kind of look at every angle of that area to make sure that we're doing everything we can to make it as safe as possible," Plymouth Police Deputy Chief Erik Fadden said.

Still, police say pedestrian-vehicle accidents are still relatively rare at the school.

A representative for Wayzata Public Schools said they will be holding meetings with district staff, city administration and police to talk about ideas to improve traffic safety.