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The grandmother of a six-year-old Springfield girl, who was killed by a vehicle in the North End section of Springfield earlier this month, has started a petition drive. She is looking for speed bumps to be installed in the neighborhood where the incident took place.
On May 12 Khloe Marie Rosario Quiñones was struck by a vehicle on Newland Street, a roadway off of Plainfield Street, which is a busy main artery. The incident remains under investigation, according to the Hampden District Attorney’s office.
"There's a lot of traffic up and down the street, there's a lot of speeding," said Heather Rivera, Khloe’s grandmother, as she described what she has seen in the neighborhood.
And since the incident, Rivera started an online petition drive calling for the city to install speed bumps on side streets in the area. As of Wednesday afternoon, the petition had more than 700 supporters.
Rivera also said more signage alerting motorists to speed limits and the presence of children is needed.
"It hasn't been easy for the family but one thing I can do is advocate for my granddaughter," Rivera said. "That's what I'm going to keep doing until they put signs on that street."
In her obituary Khloe was described as a little girl with a "kind-hearted" nature, who loved to give hugs and spend time with her siblings. She loved animals and loved to laugh. She is survived by her parents, her two siblings and an extended family.
Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno expressed sympathy to Khloe's family, calling the loss of life “tragic.” He said the city’s department of public works and police are looking into what can be done.
"They have to ascertain what the causation was of this," the mayor said. "Then, if there needs to be corrections made there, you don't make a knee jerk reaction which causes another problem down the road."
Sarno said the city has tried to make things safer for pedestrians in recent years.
“We've probably done nearly 30 fully automated crosswalk areas throughout the city," Sarno said. "Now, that's not going to bring back this young girl's life, my heart breaks."
The mayor said one problem in trying to control traffic is that traffic citations often get overturned on appeal in court and drivers do not get the message to slow down. He called on the courts to uphold more of the traffic tickets.
At least three Springfield city councilors, Maria Perez, Tracye Whitfield and Jose Delgado have signed the petition.
NEPM reporter Nirvani Williams contributed to this report.
