I fail to understand why the Girl Scouts would put the girls headed to camp in danger and also endanger the local community. There seems to be a lack of understanding as to the reason behind the restriction. As a user of Kings Mountain Road (because HWY 84 is closed) I know the dangers. I believe that there have been accidents with buses coming up and down Kings Mountain Road and I certainly am aware of the many times that the road has been closed due to accidents. A worst case scenario of a rapidly spreading fire on Kings Mountain along with a bus blocking the road due to an accident or a malfunction could leave many dead. Kings Mountain is an evacuation route in the event of fire or other disaster. What is so hard to understand. The Girl Scouts should have some desire to protect and serve, not endanger themselves and/or a whole community. Where is their sense of community that they are putting their needs above the needs of thousands of residents. I suggest that Angela Swartz and some of the Girl scout executive travel Kings Mountain Road to see what they are asking. A half dozen trips up and down at the times the buses would be coming and going should give them a better idea of the problem

As a former Girl Scout, I want to support the troops. As a mountain resident, I attest to the danger of the windy, steep road which is currently compromised further due to storm damage with traffic down to one lane in places. A possible compromise might be to have police escorts (with sirens) lead each large bus up Huddart Park. Still, the road is not safe for large busses and alternatives that emphasize safety (vs. convenience) should be explored so as to not expose the Girl Scouts, cyclists, or other motorists to undue risk.

maybe all those bus trips are why the road failed - it certainly didn't help

The town of Woodside certainly seems determined to make itself look bad. First all the nonsense about climbing the entire town was endangered mountain lion habitat, in order to avoid state housing laws, now picking on poor girl scouts (!) who just want to transport some kids safely to a beautiful park to spend some time outdoors in nature. The article noted that the busses the girl scouts proposed using this year are smaller than in the past, my suggestion is the town work with the scouts and use whatever kind of sort is necessary to get the busses to the park. Seriously, making the girls walk the last half mile along that road? I hope the town staff gets direction to accommodate the needs to the girl scouts, this situation is unsafe for the girls and looks terrible for the town.

WP,
Sounds like the town did say busses shorter than 38 feet would be acceptable but the scouts did not like that answer and want to start a petition to overturn the towns decision. They seem to feel that busses are not the problem, however the comments above attest to the fact they are an issue. I would guess that anyone who drives Kings Mountain Road has run into busses taking up both lanes on the turns, I know I have. I think if the Girl Scouts are not happy with the new rules they look else where for a better location next year. In the meantime the town has said it is willing to work with them this summer so as to not impact their program. Aren't Girl Scouts taught to overcome problems and find solutions? Maybe the leadership needs to spend some time doing that...

The article quotes the camp directors as claiming that there have never been incidents with the buses in 20+ years. Meanwhile an NBC Bay Area interview came out showing VIDEO of just such an incident. It's titled, "Is there a safe solution to Woodside road hazard?"; you'll find it if you Google search. I encourage all to view it before commenting. The scout leaders love to blame cyclists, cars - anyone other than the buses crossing the centerline without warning. This video shows exactly what is happening. Everyone is driving/riding in a totally reasonable manner. The bus appears across the centerline out of nowhere, forcing the car off the road. The cyclist was injured, but even if it were just the car being forced into a ditch, that would be enough on its own! In what world does anyone view this video and honestly believe that these buses aren't a problem??!

For those who claim (a) buses do not cross the double-yellow center line, (b) buses have never caused an accident, and (c) this isn't a problem, there is a video showing this is simply UNTRUE. It could not be any clearer!

This incident, which was captured on video, happened just 10 days ago and sent the bicycle rider - who was riding safely and under the speed limit - to the hospital.

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