Teen fatally struck by tractor-trailer

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A 13-year-old girl died here on Tuesday after she was struck by a tractor-trailer while trying to catch a city bus on the last day of school.

Aniya Williams used to ride a school bus, but service to her school was eliminated, NBC New York reports.

The teen died at a hospital following the accident. The driver of the truck remained at the scene. No criminal charges were filed.

City Councilwoman Debi Rose sent an e-mail to the city Department of Education saying the decision to reduce school bus service should be reconsidered in the aftermath of Williams' death.

She also wrote the city Department of Transportation, saying that school crossing signs on the road should be repainted and there should be more crossing guards around the school, according to NBC New York.

On Wednesday, Staten Island Real-Time News reported that the state Senate last week passed a bill to amend the state education law to mandate that the city Department of Education provide school bus transportation to children in grades three through eight who live more than one mile from school.

SBF has been following this issue since August of last year. Most recently, we reported that State Supreme Court Justice John Fusco ruled that the city's decision to take away yellow bus service to these students was made “without concern for the welfare and safety of the affected students.”

Fusco’s decision was in response to a lawsuit that Staten Island parents and local elected leaders filed against the city after the school bus variances were taken from nearly 3,000 students across the borough at the start of the school year in an effort to save money.

In regard to the legislation, Staten Island Real-Time News reports that the bill now awaits action in the Assembly Education Committee.

Sen. Andrew Lanza (R-Staten Island), who authored the bill to restore the school bus service, told the news source that Williams’ death "turns my stomach" and that school bus restoration remains a "top priority" legislatively.