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Hillsborough dad: Son walks to bus stop on busy road with no lights, sidewalks

A father says he and his son have had several close calls with cars while walking to the bus stop on Gunn Highway where there are no sidewalks or streetlights.

ODESSA, Fla. — Parents worry about the safety of their children while they're in class, but one Odessa father says he worries more about the safety of his son's trip to school.

Samuel Morris posted a Facebook video showing his son running along Gunn Highway to get to his bus stop. There's no sidewalk and there are no street lights. His son goes to Hammond Elementary.

Morris' son has to walk about 150 feet along the highway to get to his bus stop. This is a change from last year when the school bus used to pick his son up at the end of the driveway. 

"A couple weeks ago my son and I almost got hit by a car, they just come around so fast," Morris said. 

He's reached out to the Hillsborough County Public School District and the transportation department and says he's gotten no response. 

"I've spent like 18 hours on hold," Morris said.

10News reached out to Hillsborough County Public Schools and received this response within a matter of hours:

"This is not a bus stop issue. The stop is at the safest spot as there is a curve there. This is more of a law enforcement or county government issue."

We reached out to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and received this statement:

"That would be up to Public Works. Thank you for sending over this video. While it may not be something our deputies can solve directly, I have passed this along to our traffic section in that area, and have been told they will reach out to the district and county to see what can be done to help."

We reached out to Hillsborough County Public works and they say Morris never contacted them. They did, however, offer three solutions to Morris' safety concerns. 

Within the next few weeks, the county's public works department will add a "bus stop ahead" sign south of Morris's driveway. They'll also work with TECO to discuss the installation of at least one stoplight in the area. The department will also look at adding traffic delineators, or the plastic poles to separate traffic.

Hillsborough County Public Works urges any parent with safety concerns about their child's bus stop to call them at (813) 272-5900.

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