‘Absolutely outrageous’: Family calls for improved school bus safety following daughter’s death

The family and friends of a young woman struck and killed by a school bus in The Beaches neighbourhood last month are speaking out about the rising number of school bus fatalities in the GTA. They are demanding answers on why improved safety practices have remained largely unimplemented.

According to police 22-year-old Rachel Turner was walking west along Kingston Road on October 9 when she was struck around 4 p.m. in the crosswalk by a school bus which was making a left turn onto Kingswood Road. She was transported to a hospital in life-threatening condition and died of her injuries three days later.

Turner is one of three people who have been struck and killed by a school bus in the GTA in the last five months. Her family is now calling on all levels of government to step up and enhance school bus safety. 

“We just don’t want Rachel to be a statistic,” said Rachel’s father Leon Turner.

“Rachel had a great bright future ahead of her. She was compassionate, talented, very intelligent, and creative. And now we’re never going to see her full potential reached.”

“This isn’t us to stand up here, this is our daughter. My daughter would stand up if it had happened in this community. She’d be the first one to look into it and say this doesn’t make sense,” added Rachel’s mother Susan Turner.

Mike Smitiuch, who is representing the family, says a federal task force investigating school bus safety was completed in 2019 and 2020. Both reports recommended a suite of safety improvements but years later he says those many of those recommendations have not been implemented. 

“Some of the recommendations included having sensors on buses just like we have on cars, having cameras on buses so they can see what’s around them and having automated braking systems as well. None of these measures that were recommended have been implemented,” he said.

Smitiuch added they are also calling on the government to make stricter changes to the requirements to become a school bus driver. In Ontario you only have to be 21 years old to drive a school bus and part of the training can be done online.

“The other shocking part that we were all shocked and very surprised to learn is you can have up to six demerit points and drive a school bus which is absolutely outrageous.”

To honour of Rachel’s memory, her family has set up The Rachel Turner Legacy Fund on gofundme to help provide resources and needed support, including crisis counselling, to young people. The fund has surpassed its goal and raised more than $153,000 to date.