People drive toooo fast on Belmont Ridge Road and when it is dark and no lights all hell breaks loose on this road...Hey with all the money we put out on property tax on our cars, street lights would be nice as well as widening the road...

Sounds like it was the bus drivers fault not the street lights or the road being too narrow.

Our bus driver hit a parked trash truck earlier this year... With as many buses as LCPS has I am not surprised they have the occasional accident.

I am sure the insurance carrier will feel the same way. Were the drivers tested? i drive and have for 40 years and haven't had the occasional accident. unacceptable!

Regarding the correction, I appreciate that one term sounds better than the other (especially for calming parents), but I am having a hard time seeing how a bump is not a type of collision.

Oh good lord the GASP's are out... grammar and spelling police. A kid needed the hospital because off a bump? Once it was found to be bus drivers it's no longer a collision but a bump. talk about pc b.s.

Call it what you will. I used the term "collided" in the initial story. It was my choice of words. And while I tend to agree a bump is a collision, I think when people hear the word collided, they envision a more serious accident than I believe occurred. I'm not trying to calm anyone. I'm trying to be more accurate about what happened. If you think it was a more serious accident and have evidence of that, please share. As for the anecdotal point that someone went to the hospital, you could get a good bump on the head from a bus stopping too fast. I believe the trip to the hospital was a precaution. But again, if you know otherwise, let me know.

How about just SLOWING DOWN?? What's the big hurry? Belmont Ridge Road is a two-lane country road...not a NASCAR track. Try going 45mph and NOT 60mph people!!!

How serious does it have to get to be a collision. You could get a good bump on the head from a straight left hook but don;t call it a punch.

Why are seatbelts optional? If we are asked to pay for seatbelts via our taxes why are they then made optional. Sounds like the least desirable situation possible, funding optional safety devices!!!!!!!

So with the damage to the buses and the medical bills are we over $1000.00 now? A bump is something I do on the dance floor not in my vehicles! Larry is right on about optional. Who was doing 60 mph the bus drivers?

I have a good solution, let's build an expensive high school next to Belmont Ridge, so that we can add 1600 more students, 200 staff, and throw in a roundabout making it difficult for buses to maneuver. Not only will the buses backup, but more accidents will be on the horizon.

Tom -- future conditions must be considered. The Belmont Ridge interchange is planned to be opened by 2015. The money has been allocated for it, so it's only a matter of time. MS-6 is opening in 2014, which is likely to serve Ashburn Farm and Belmont CC -- so that traffic is going away. AND -- there won't be Lansdowne parents, students, and busses exiting the neighborhood to get to BOTH Stone Bridge and Tuscarora.

Sonny,
You don't have the facts. The accident happened on upper Belmont ridge. The interchange has nothing to do with the roundabout at Riverpointe and Upper Belmont. And, you are way off base with the rest of your comments.

Tom, Hmmm. The article says, "As the buses headed south on Belmont Ridge Road toward Route 7 and approached the traffic signal, one bus stopped and the second bumped the rear of the first." No mention of Upper Belmont. Upper Belmont changes into Belmont Ridge Road after crossing Riverside Parkway. I can't tell for sure if it happened approaching the traffic light at Promenade or Route 7. Since Route 7 is mentioned, I don't think it's unreasonable to assume that it occurred approaching the intersection of Belmont Ridge and 7. But either way, the incident happened -- PAST THE PROPOSED ROUND-A-BOUT.

My comments are based on the report and conclusions of the third-party traffic engineers who completed an extensive study of this area. Not sure how I can be "off base" about MS-6 opening next to Newton-Lee in 2014, and how Lansdowne won't be going to Tuscarora and Stone Bridge if HS-8 is at the NCC site, but oh well. Let's just agree to disagree :)

The video shows buses going south on Upper Belmont stacked past the intersection north of where the traffic circle is supposed to be built, so good luck with that.
HS-8 is not going to be built on the NCC site because the county found "large areas of deep fills" that are "unsuitable for foundation, utility and pavement infrastructure."
The high school is going to be built on the site of Lansdowne Sports Park. Those fields will not be replaced.
Instead the county will pay off Loudoun Soccer and they will have to go somewhere farther west and pay-to-play on private property.
Anything to bail out the NCC.

Are you going to post the final cost of the property damage and the medical costs so we can all see what it is that you consider minor?