Malloy News Brief: Aspen Hill School Bus Accident
Among the many varieties of content which we are proud to bring you here on Malloy Law dot com, updates to traffic laws, and the various devices which our municipal and state authorities use to enforce them, are among the most consistently popular. It makes sense. While we believe in our mission to promote public safety, inform the public of their rights in approaching a personal injury lawsuit, and give our two cents on the occasional personal injury case which crosses into the public consciousness as a human interest story, a change in the law affects people directly, and even the most apathetic private citizen still must contend with the often-fearsome traffic of a DMV region commute. Today’s Malloy News Brief will cover upcoming changes to a specific Montgomery County intersection, but it will also unpack the tragic circumstances surrounding the Aspen Hill School Bus Accident which necessitated the change.
10/9/25 – Aspen Hill School Bus Accident
Nestled among the charming suburbs of Aspen Hill, just a short drive from Rockville’s bustling town center, Earle B. Wood Middle School sits alongside Bauer Drive. Just south of the Middle School and Earle B. Wood Park, Bauer Drive intersects Russett Road. Until recently, this intersection had no stop sign for drivers traveling in either direction on Bauer Drive. However, the Montgomery County Department of Transportation has recently seen fit to implement a three way stop at this intersection. In historical terms, this is not even a footnote, the kind of menial business of government that would, ordinarily, fall beyond the notice of even the most motivated city desk journalist. However, this particular stop sign was not a simple twitch of bureaucracy. It was a response to a tragedy.
A Tragedy at the Crosswalk
On October 9th, 2025, 11 year old Summer Lim, a student enrolled at Earle B. Wood Middle School, was fatally struck by a school bus traveling through the Bauer/Russett intersection while riding her bike. The crash remains under investigation and it is unclear whether the presence of a three way stop at the intersection would have saved Summer Lim’s life. But Montgomery County has chosen caution and prudence in the wake of this tragedy, and it is hard, in our opinion, to find fault with this path.
The unfortunate thing is that the addition of this stop sign may have come far sooner. The change had been under consideration for some time, with a particular spike in interest after a different, unnamed boy was stuck while crossing the street by a driver traveling west on Bauer on February 5th. The boy in question sustained only minor injuries. This collision was not widely reported at the time of the accident, but has drawn new levels of attention after the Lim tragedy. In hindsight, it feels like a warning.
How Malloy Law Can Help
If you or a loved one has suffered an accident involving a bus, Malloy Law can help. Our experienced team of attorneys will evaluate your case free of charge and plot a path to maximum compensation. Contact Malloy Law today, let’s win your case.