Looking back, I never would have imagined that many of the recreational activities I participated in and enjoyed, especially walking and bicycling to school, climbing ropes in PE, hiking to the local nature center, and playing games at recess, would impact my life so significantly.
In honor of July being Parks and Recreation month, I decided to focus on how we, as Safe Routes to School advocates, can ensure that all children have the ability to be active outside all year round. Just like walking and bicycling to school, access to parks and recreation can directly impact the overall quality of life for children.
In June, articles in the Akron Beacon Journal highlighted the safety inequity between urban and suburban students that walk or bike to school (you can read them here and
While schools are out for summer and many Americans head out on vacation, things on Capitol Hill have been heating up. I’ve got updates on a range of federal policy topics to share with Safe Routes to School advocates.
Policy comes in many shapes and sizes. Some use the idea or comparison of BIG P and little p policy. A BIG P policy might be one that is at the state level, even one that is made into a law. Little p’s are smaller, possibly at the local government, or in the case of Safe Routes to School at the individual school level.
Major polls show that Americans want to live in places where it’s safe to walk and bicycle. The demand for walkable, livable communities has prompted many municipalities to make more investments in multi-modal transportation and adopt policies such as Complete Streets that institutionalize planning, design and construction for all types of road users.