Son of Crossing Guard Hit by Car Implores Lawrence Council to Support Lower Speed Limit on Route 206

Monday may have been Valentine’s Day but it also marked the 9th anniversary of one of the worst tragedies to strike Lawrence Township in recently memory.

On Feb. 14, 2002, beloved school crossing guard Robert “Bob” Gernhart, 70, was killed when he was struck by a car at his post on Lawrence Road (Route 206) at Lawrence Avenue in front of the Church of Saint Ann.

The painful memory of Gernhart’s death was recalled during a meeting at the Municipal Building on Tuesday (Feb. 15) when Anthony Sebasto Jr. – son of another township crossing guard who survived being hit by a car in December – stood before township council and implored Mayor Greg Puliti and other council members to do everything in their power to get the speed limit on Lawrence Road, between Darrah Lane and the Harneys Corner intersection (Princeton Avenue/Princeton Pike), lowered before another pedestrian – possibly a child – is struck.

“The citizens, the township crossing guards and our school children are all forced to play Russian Roulette at the hands of Lawrenceville Road and its 40 mile-per-hour speed limit. If driving trends continue, traffic congestion will only get worse, leading to an increase to careless driving behavior,” Sebasto told council members.

“We live in a society where tragedy is most often the driving force for changes that affect safety. I believe that the leadership of Lawrence Township has an opportunity to be proactive through a preventative measure helping to lower the speed of Lawrenceville Road, improving the safety of its citizens before another motor vehicle accident involving a pedestrian occurs,” he said. “The longer we wait, more bullets are going to fill the empty chamber of that gun before every spin, and we all know what that means. It’s only a matter of time before another accident occurs.”

It was about 6:45 a.m. on Dec. 14, 2010, when Anthony Sebasto Sr., 83, on Lawrence Road at the intersection with Eggerts Crossing Road. The elder Sebasto suffered nine broken ribs, three fractured vertebrae in his spine, a fractured leg and a punctured lung, and spent time at the regional trauma center in Trenton and then St. Lawrence Rehabilitation Center in Lawrence. He is still recovering from the injuries from his home on Drexel Avenue.

“But to an ex-Marine and a Korean War veteran, apparently all of this sums up to a flesh wound, according to him,” Sebasto’s son said in giving council members an update on his father’s condition.

Following the accident, for Sebasto Sr. and the issue of how to improve pedestrian safety at the dangerous crossing was a .

“My dad was lucky. If anything, he is happy that no children were involved. A child probably would not have survived that impact because he was hit dead-on with the bumper,” Sebasto Jr. said to council members. “Tonight, I’m easy standing here, because my dad survived. I don’t think any of you want to sit up there on that dais and face a grieving sibling of a crossing guard or, even worse, a grieving parent asking of you why nothing drastic was done to dramatically improve pedestrian safety on Lawrenceville Road.”

Sebasto Jr. asked council members to adopt a resolution supporting the lowering of the speed limit on the stretch of Lawrence Road from Darrah Lane to Harneys Corner, and to work with the state Department of Transportation to do whatever is necessary to get the speed limit lowered. From speaking to state officials himself, Sebasto Jr. said the process would likely need to be done in two stages – first going from 40 mph to 35 mph, and then finally to 30 mph. He also urged council to encourage police to conduct a “traffic speed enforcement campaign” in the area.      

Since his father was hurt, Sebasto Jr. has being pouring through newspaper archives and has been able to document at least 32 instances of crossing guards being hit by vehicles in New Jersey in just over 10 years’ time. Three of those, he noted, occurred within a one-third-mile stretch of Lawrence Road – the accident involving his father, the accident that took the life of Gernhart, and another accident on Dec. 7, 1999, in which Police Officer Michael Yeh was hit by a car while he worked a crossing guard post at the same intersection where Gernhart was killed.

“What is not included is what is very likely to be hundreds and hundreds of close calls involving careless driving in the vicinity of school crossings, putting the children and the crossing guards that serve to protect them at risk of serious injury,” Sebasto Jr. said.

He spoke of a conversation he had recently with a crossing guard who works in front of Notre Dame High School, during which she related a close-call she had. “It wasn’t for the fact that a Lawrence Township police officer, who had pulled over in his cruiser and was standing there, pulled her out of the way, she would have been struck,” he related. “My father has heard from other crossing guards – some of whom he has never even met, who sent him cards wishing him well – citing their own moments of terror while on duty.”

Sebasto Jr. said he used to believe that flashing lights and better signage were the answer. But no longer. He believes the only real way to improve pedestrian safety is to lower the speed limit.

In responding to the junior Sebasto’s request, Puliti said public safety is a priority for the council. He said the township, in response to requests from other residents, already has a meeting scheduled with representatives of the state Department of Transportation within the next few weeks to discuss ways to improve pedestrian safety in town. As part of that conversation, Puliti promised, the township will inquire about the steps necessary to get the speed limit lowered on Lawrence Road.

“And unfortunately I do know somebody who wasn’t so lucky. It was a fatality,” Puliti said, speaking of Gernhart’s death. He appeared for a moment to be overwhelmed by emotion, his voice breaking slightly. “Bob was a very, very close friend. I knew him all my life. That was a sad day when that happened.”

The following is a transcript of the speech made by Anthony Sebasto Jr. to township council on Feb. 15:

The purpose of me being here tonight is public safety as it relates to Lawrenceville Road and its current speed limit of 40 miles-per-hour between Darrah Lane and Harneys Corner. I am the son of Tony Sebasto Sr., crossing guard at Lawrenceville Road and Eggerts Crossing Road. As most of you know, dad was struck by a motor vehicle on the morning of Dec. 14 while on duty. I’m sure you’re all wondering how dad’s doing. I will tell you that he continues to recover with therapy after being injured with nine broken ribs, three fractured vertebrae in his spine, a fractured leg and a punctured lung. But to an ex-Marine and a Korean War veteran, apparently all of this sums up to a flesh wound, according to him.

So this was dad’s 12th year as a crossing guard in this township at that intersection. Until his accident he had only missed three days in his prior 11 years. He’s pretty dedicated. To dad, safety is job one. And I believe that the police department would stand up and say he does it really well. In the court of public opinion, the job of a crossing guard has been deemed more dangerous that a fireman. Firemen may have a different opinion.

Since my dad’s accident, I’ve been doing research on crossing guard incidents in the state of New Jersey. In the last 15 years, at least 32 crossing guards – that I’ve uncovered so far in what’s available to the public – have been struck by a motor vehicle – a small handful ending in death and some involving injuries to children as well.

Now tonight’s not about the state’s business. But in the state there are countless miles of state, county and local roads requiring the existence of school crosswalks. In the last 15 years, actually in a little over 10 years, three of the 32 I’ve uncovered occurred in the same one-third-mile stretch of Lawrenceville Road in Lawrence Township, and that includes my dad’s. My search is not over – I’m sure there are some that I missed. These are just the ones that made the news media, because this is all based on research of newspapers articles. What’s even more concerning is that what I’ve found through the research is only those accidents that are reported in the news media. Obviously what is not included is what is very likely to be hundreds and hundreds of close calls involving careless driving in the vicinity of school crossings, putting the children and the crossing guards that serve to protect them at risk of serious injury.

I’ve been made aware that within the last year, Valerie, the crossing guard at Notre Dame High School – you all probably don’t even realize this; she told me this when she came to see my dad in the hospital – that she was almost struck by a driver. And if it wasn’t for the fact that a Lawrence Township police officer, who had pulled over in his cruiser and was standing there, pulled her out of the way, she would have been struck. My father has heard from other crossing guards – some of whom he has never even met, who sent him cards wishing him well – citing their own moments of terror while on duty.

My father has gone way out of his way in the last 10 years sharing with the police department and others who will listen countless stories centered on careless driving at his post. I don’t need to stand here and waste the mayor and town council’s time and give you a long dissertation on the driving habits of today’s drivers. We all think that driving while texting is the root of all evil. Statistics have shown that dangers near schools are attributable mostly to a large change over the years in the number of students being driven to school. What used to be 50 percent on the average is now approaching 85 percent statewide in New Jersey. Accidents involving crossing guards are up nearly 70 percent from a decade ago and that’s according to those who manage the workman’s comp funds.

I used to think that flashing lights and better signs were the answer on Lawrenceville Road. Quite frankly, I believe these are all Band-aides to the problem any more. Control of the driving behavior needs to happen much farther away from the school zones and the school crossings just because of drivers’ behavior. Lawrenceville Road is a major artery, as we all know, for traffic through Lawrence Township, not just by the locals but anyone traveling north-south to and from Trenton, Princeton and points beyond.

The citizens, the township crossing guards and our school children are all forced to play Russian Roulette at the hands of Lawrenceville Road and its 40 mile-per-hour speed limit. If driving trends continue, traffic congestion will only get worse, leading to an increase to careless driving behavior. We live in a society where tragedy is most often the driving force for changes that affect safety – it is what it is. I believe that the leadership of Lawrence Township has an opportunity to be proactive through a preventative measure helping to lower the speed of Lawrenceville Road, improving the safety of its citizens before another motor vehicle accident involving a pedestrian occurs. The longer we wait, more bullets are going to fill the empty chamber of that gun before every spin, and we all know what that means. It’s only a matter of time before another accident occurs.

My dad was lucky. If anything, he is happy that no children were involved. A child probably would not have survived that impact because he was hit dead-on with the bumper. Tonight, I’m easy standing here, because my dad survived. I don’t think any of you want to sit up there on that dais and face a grieving sibling of a crossing guard or, even worse, a grieving parent asking of you why nothing drastic was done to dramatically improve pedestrian safety on Lawrenceville Road.

Tonight I am requesting that the Township of Lawrence give strong consideration to establishing and adopting a resolution, that the Lawrence Township police force begin immediately a traffic speed enforcement campaign on Lawrenceville Road between Harneys Corner and Darrah Lane, and that Lawrence Township request traffic surveys by the state of New Jersey and its Department of Transportation. If the 85th percentile of drivers are compliant to the posted speed limit, the State of New Jersey will through a two-step process to lower the speed limit of Lawrenceville Road between Harneys Corner and Darrah Lane first to 35 miles-per-hour, and finally to a township goal of 30 miles-per-hour.

And I ask that Lawrence Township request the state of New Jersey reconsider the intersection of Lawrenceville Road at Eggerts Crossing Road as a designated school zone to enable future speed reductions to 25 miles-per-hour during school hours and to enforce current state laws for traffic offenses involving convictions for DWI in a school zone, which means double the fines and double the jail sentences.

Now last week I spoke to the acting supervising engineer of the New Jersey Department of Transportation about the whole situation and what the process was – because I really needed to understand what the tie was between local and state government. They’re very willing to lower the speed limit. All the onus is on this township through a resolution – that’s the only way it can be done, but you all know that; you know your business better than me. He was very helpful but said there’s no chance of dropping the speed limit from 40 to 30 in one swoop. I suspect you all know better than I do how the speed limit adjustments are through radar surveys and 85 percentile, etc.

This is not just a school day problem. You have crossings of people at the [Lawrence Road] Presbyterian Church, you have a church crossing at St. Ann’s on Sundays… And by the way, I just want to be very clear, I don’t want to diminish the safety risks of all the other crossing guard posts around the township. I’ve been told that the crossing guard at the high school sometimes has been seen performing what appeared to be a one-man rendition of “River Dance” dodging traffic as people jockey around on Princeton Pike, which is 25 miles-per-hour.

It’s interesting. The website of the state of New Jersey, when it talks about traffic speed limits, and you all can go on there and see it for yourself, says that in areas of low residential density and low business density the speed limit is 35 miles-per-hour. I’ve been up and down Lawrenceville Road long enough to say it seems to me to be a low-density residential district and a low-density business district. So by itself it would seem to be going too fast. Lawrenceville Road, especially by dad’s post, is very narrow. It’s very different than Princeton Pike, which is much wider, as you all know. And so I don’t know what you all will consider doing, but that’s my request.