LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) – A hit-and-run accident that sent two brothers to Norton Children's Hospital Wednesday morning with serious injuries is shedding a light on traffic safety along Broadway.
Louisville Metro Police said the boys, ages 11 and 13, are in stable condition. They were crossing West Broadway near 31st Street to get to a TARC bus stop for school when the driver hit them and didn't stop.
The intersection falls along the lines of both District One and District Five. District One Councilwoman Jessica Green says the news was heartbreaking.
"The fact that anybody would hit two kids and keep rolling without stopping to see how those kids were doing, shows me that driver was not only criminal, but they are also lacking in character and basic compassion," Green said.
People in the neighborhood were not shocked that an accident could have happened in that area. Broadway Meat Market and Produce store owner Yasser Bargouthi lost two of his nephews to car accidents, so Wednesday's hit and run was devastating for him to hear.
"I see some drivers just zooming down the street. They really don't care who's on the side trying to cross," Bargouthi said. "There is no guardrails on the sidewalk, there is no stop signs, no traffic lights."
Bargouthi said with two day cares nearby, he fears for the kids' safety and would like to see safety precautions put in place.
"Accidents do happen but we can have some preventions to try and reduce accidents on certain streets," Bargouthi said. "I really would like to see some traffic lights on those two streets before the viaduct and guardrails on the sidewalk would be nice."
Councilwoman Green said she recognizes the area is a safety concern but adding she hasn't received any formal complaints. She said she doesn't want to be "so reactionary" to Wednesday's accident.
"A hit could happen anywhere, someone could be unethical and lack compassion and hit a kid, we've had kids even hit at stop signs before or hit at crosswalks," Green said.
She said she would need to work with District Five Councilwoman Cheri Hamilton to get any safety precautions in place.
"That's something we'll talk about today actually, to see if there’s any interest in us doing anything like that," Green said. "We also want to pursue a traffic study at that intersection. And so, what happens is that traffic and engineering will come out to see if something needs to go right there. We don't get to unilaterally decide if something is going to go in there."
Wednesday's accident on Broadway isn't the first. In the past few years, there have been five accidents involving pedestrians on Broadway, with several involving children.
According to crash data from the Kentucky State Police, there have been 164 accidents involving pedestrians on Broadway from January 1, 2013 to October 31, 2018. Of those accidents, 141 people were injured, and six deaths were reported. The data does not specify how many of those accidents involved children.
►Contact reporter Tyler Emery at temery@WHAS11.com. Follow her on Twitter (@TylerWHAS11) and Facebook.