A 13-year-old student's fatal bike crash on Wednesday, Sept. 9, has sharpened the stakes for Oakton High School families ahead of a Tuesday, Sept. 15, vote on restoring crossing guards.

The Frost Middle School boy was struck and killed by a large truck on the 3900 block of Pickett Road in Fairfax City, about a half-mile from school, while riding his bike home around 2:32 p.m., according to WUSA9. He was pronounced dead at the scene near the drive aisle between Fair City Mall and Turnpike Shopping Center.

A preliminary investigation found the truck was leaving the shopping center when it hit the boy, Fox 5 reported. The driver and vehicle were found nearby. Fairfax City police are leading the investigation with help from the Fairfax County Police Department's Crash Reconstruction Unit. No charges had been announced as of Sept. 10.

The fatal crash was one of three separate incidents that day involving FCPS students on bikes or scooters. An 11-year-old girl on an e-scooter was hit near Brookfield Elementary School in Chantilly around 8:18 a.m., and a 13-year-old on a bike was struck at Toll House Road and Country Lane in Annandale around 3:20 p.m. and taken to a hospital with minor injuries, NBC Washington reported.

FCPS Superintendent Michelle Reid sent a letter to families on the evening of Sept. 9 expressing condolences and asking the community to reflect on student safety.

School board member calls for action

School Board member Melanie Meren, who represents the Hunter Mill District, has been among the most vocal critics of the county's decision to cut crossing guard funding.

"There are serious roadway improvements that need to happen in Fairfax County. We know what they are, there are recommendations, and yet there's no action," Meren told WUSA9.

Meren said she spent every day of the school year outside South Lakes High School after a 16-year-old student was hit by a car there on Tuesday, Sept. 1. She told DC News Now she is researching Vision Zero, a strategy aimed at eliminating all traffic fatalities, and plans to hold a community meeting on the topic later in September.

In a WTOP interview published Monday, Sept. 7, Meren said county officials had been trying to shift crossing guard responsibility since 2024. The Town of Vienna was among localities told the county would not provide guards because of funding challenges, she said.

What's at stake Tuesday

The Board of Supervisors approved a budget in May on a 9-1 vote that cut $1.89 million from the Fairfax County Police Department's crossing guard program, eliminating 13 full-time positions. The cuts ended guard coverage at 10 high schools, including Oakton.

After the Sept. 1 crash near South Lakes, police temporarily reinstated guards at all 10 schools, plus McLean, on Wednesday, Sept. 2.

Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity requested that the board consider allocating $400,000 to fund crossing guard changes as part of the county's fiscal year 2026 carryover budget review. That vote is set for Tuesday, Sept. 15, following a 10:30 a.m. public hearing at the Fairfax County Government Center.

Frost Middle School parent Stacey Harris, whose seventh-grade son attends the school, said many students bike or scooter to campus. She told WUSA9 the tragedy should push drivers to slow down, but added that the cost of that message was too high.

Someone left yellow roses near the spot where the boy was killed, NBC Washington reported.