Thousands of Millcreek-area kids walked to Morningside, Moss, Penn and other elementary schools Wednesday, Aug. 12, marking the first day of a school year that Granite School District is pairing with a renewed push for pedestrian safety.

The district is urging families to use a new interactive website built with UDOT that maps the safest walking route from any neighborhood to each school. Granite communications director Luke Allen said the tool is especially important given the volume of young pedestrians hitting sidewalks and crosswalks across the district's 58,000-student system.

"We do encourage all parents to get online and find the safe walking routes for their school," Allen told ABC4 on Tuesday, Aug. 11.

The urgency is backed by sobering numbers. The Utah Highway Safety Office reports that 4,477 pedestrians were involved in crashes statewide from 2020 to 2024, an average of nearly 895 per year. Of those, 291 were killed. Pedestrians in crashes are 11 times more likely to die than people involved in other crash types, and the 13-to-20 age group has the highest pedestrian crash rate, both as drivers and as pedestrians.

Salt Lake City is responding with physical changes near school crossings. Mary Sizemore, a transportation engineer with the Salt Lake City Transportation Department, said crews install crosswalk markings and concrete curb extensions that shorten the distance children must cross. Shorter crossings matter for kids, Sizemore said, because they have shorter legs and walk slower than adults.

The safety campaign arrives as the district faces a broader funding question. Granite's board will hold a Truth-in-Taxation hearing Tuesday, Aug. 18, at 6 p.m. at district headquarters, 2500 S. State Street in Salt Lake City. The board is seeking approximately $21.7 million in new revenue, according to the board's agenda, an 11.2% increase above the certified tax rate.

If approved, the increase would add roughly $125 to the annual property tax bill on an average home valued at about $570,000. It is the district's fourth consecutive year holding a Truth-in-Taxation hearing. Last year's proposed rate was rejected by the Utah State Tax Commission, leaving ongoing expenses unfunded, according to Utah News Dispatch.

As we reported Aug. 4, families at Morningside, Moss and Penn have already challenged cuts to special education resource teacher positions at those schools. Whether the Aug. 18 vote can restore that staffing remains an open question heading into the new school year.

The public comment period at the Aug. 18 hearing begins at 6 p.m.