Safe Routes to School E-News
Issue #22: October 2007
Safe Routes to school E-News is a monthly email newsletter published by the Safe Routes to School Partnership, a growing network of more than 300 non-profit organizations, government agencies, and professional groups that are working to set goals, share best practices, secure funding, and provide detailed policy input to implementing agencies for advancing the Safe Routes to School national movement.
Don’t miss the 1st Safe Routes to School National Conference: Creating, Building and Sustaining Momentum, November 5-7-2007. Sign up at: http://www.saferoutesmichigan.org/nationalconference.htm.
To receive future issues of E-News, email info@saferoutespartnership.org.
In this issue:
1. Partnership Releases National Report on SRTS "State of the States"
October 1 press conference with Congressman Oberstar marks the release
2. Highways and Transit Sub-Committee holds SRTS Hearing October 2nd at 10 AM
View the live web cast at http://transportation.house.gov/
3. Four New Organizations Join Steering Committee
Help us welcome AASA, AHA, ITE and PANA
4. 1st SRTS National Conference in Michigan, November 5-7, 2007
Register before October 10th for lower rates
5. Partnership Annual Meeting November 7th at SRTS National Conference
Be sure to sign up for the Annual Meeting when you register for the conference
6. Get Media Attention for Your W2SD Events on October 3rd
Take advantage of photo opportunities too by being prepared with photo waivers
7. SRTS National Partnership’s State Network Project Update
Exciting and Challenging Opportunities for the Networks
8. New York SRTS Program: Building Coalitions and Making Headlines
New York Governor Spitzer announced the launch of state SRTS initiative
9. New Hampshire Creatively Tackles SRTS Issues Throughout the State
Communities have applied for more than $860,000 in grant funds
10. SRTS News Throughout the Country
Local and state SRTS program news links
1. Partnership Releases National Report on SRTS “State of the States”
October 1st press conference with Congressman Oberstar marks the release
On October 1st, the Safe Routes to School National Partnership released a national report titled, Safe Routes to School: 2007 State of the States.
Safe Routes to School: 2007 State of the States includes an executive summary, program needs, early success stories, observations, and resources. An exciting feature of the report is a one-page "State of the States" matrix, featuring how all states are doing with respect to the following: hiring a full time state SRTS coordinator, developing an advisory committee, releasing application guidelines, and selecting projects for SRTS funds.
The report was sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and is being presented on October 1st, the first day of International Walk to School Month, as a progress report on the implementation of the $612 million federal SRTS program that was included by Congress in the 2005 federal transportation bill SAFETEA-LU. The federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program provides funding to all 50 states and the District of Columbia to help communities improve infrastructure such as building sidewalks and bike paths, and to support education, encouragement and enforcement programs that make it safer and easier for children to walk and bicycle to schools.
Deb Hubsmith, Director of the SRTS National Partnership, is presenting Safe Routes to School: 2007 State of the States at a press conference with Congressman Oberstar, Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, on Monday October 1, 2007 at 12:30 pm Eastern Time on the Cannon Terrace at Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
2. Highways and Transit Sub-Committee holds SRTS Hearing October 2nd at 10 AM
View the live webcast at http://transportation.house.gov/
A Congressional Hearing on Safe Routes to School will take place before the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s Sub-Committee on Highways and Transit on October 2 at 10 AM Eastern Daylight Time. The Sub-Committee is chaired by Representative DeFazio from Oregon, and he asked the speakers to testify regarding their involvement and assessment of the federal SRTS program. The speakers at the hearing include the following: Lauren Marchetti, National Center for Safe Routes to School, Deb Hubsmith, SRTS National Partnership, Lisa Koch SRTS DOT Coordinator from Kansas, and Scott Bricker, from Oregon’s Bicycle Transportation Alliance.
If you are in the DC area, we invite you to attend the hearing in person. It is taking place in Room 2167 of the Rayburn House Office Building (HOB). If you are not able to attend in person, the hearing will be shown via live web cast from the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s website Tuesday morning. When you go to the Committee’s website, click on “Live Web Cast” and you can view it on Windows Media Player. Be patient because sometimes hearings don’t start on time due to roll call. We encourage you to watch the hearing to stay abreast of what is happening with SRTS on the federal level.
3. Four New Organizations Join SRTS Partnership Steering Committee
Help us welcome AASA, AHA, ITE and PANA
SRTS National Partnership is pleased to welcome our newly elected Steering Committee member organizations: American Association of School Administrators (AASA), American Heart Association (AHA), Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) and Pennsylvania Advocates for Nutrition and Activity (PANA).
The Safe Routes to School National Partnership is governed by a Steering Committee with national, state, and local perspectives on Safe Routes to School. The Steering Committee currently includes 18 members, and consists of broad representation from organizations that are associated with Safe Routes to School programs.
AASA has filled the seat that was available for a national group representing schools, AHA has stepped into a national at-large seat, ITE has filled the need for a national group representing transportation professionals and PANA serves the state health group seat.
We are excited to have these new organizations on board and look forward to working with them to further the goals of SRTS National Partnership.
For more information on SRTS National Partnership’s Steering Committee and Governance Structure, please visit our website: www.saferoutespartnership.org.
4. 1st SRTS National Conference in Michigan, November 5-7, 2007
Register before October 10th for lower rates
Save money and secure your spot at the 1st Safe Routes to School National Conference scheduled for November 5-7 in Dearborn, MI, presented by The National Center for Safe Routes to School and the Safe Routes to School National Partnership. Early registration ends October 10th. At $190, this early rate special includes your choice of more than 25 workshops, an evening at The Henry Ford with a private showing of the museum following the opening program, three inspiring plenary speakers, fabulous meals and three days of valuable networking with Safe Routes to School advocates, champions and leaders from around the country. On October 11th the rate increases to $240 for the full conference, so register now to secure the $190 rate.
Whether you’re just getting started with Safe Routes to School initiatives or have been working on the issue for years, everyone will benefit from the offerings. Several in-depth sessions and workshops will take place throughout the conference covering issues such as:
• Effective media relations
• Creative approaches for increasing program funding
• Addressing the needs of diverse populations
• Strategies for engaging and involving youth
• School siting policies
• Neighborhood traffic safety through engineering
• Engaging local law enforcement and much more
For more information and to register for the conference, please visit the Conference website.
Support for this conference is provided in part by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation® in Princeton, New Jersey. Sponsorship is also provided by the Michigan Department of Transportation and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
5. Partnership Annual Meeting November 7th at SRTS National Conference
Sign up for the Annual Meeting when you register for the Conference
Affiliates of the Safe Routes to School National Partnership are encouraged to sign-up for our Annual Meeting when they register for the SRTS National Conference. The Annual Meeting is taking place on November 7 from 8am-12pm.
It will include brainstorming sessions on obstacles and issues that need solutions for the implementation of Safe Routes to School programs, as well as the start of a process to set Safe Routes to School goals at the local, state and federal levels.
To help make the best use of time during the meeting, we are asking partner affiliates to send advance comments via email on the following two topics:
1. We want your help identifying issues and problems that need solutions for the successful implementation of Safe Routes to School programs at local, state and/or federal levels.
2. We also want you to help identify goals for Safe Routes to School efforts at local, state, and/or federal levels. We’re looking for federal goals that go beyond the existing FHWA program for Safe Routes to School.
At our September 2006 annual meeting in Madison, we adopted goals for the $612 million federal SRTS program. Click here to view these goals.
Please send your thoughts and comments to Brooke Driesse by Monday, October 8th, 2007.
6. Get Media Attention for Your Walk to School Day Events on October 3rd
Help us document this event with photos
International Walk to School Day is taking place next week on October 3, 2007. If you are currently planning a Walk and Bike to School Day event in your community, now is the time to start getting local media coverage.
The National Center for Safe Routes to School, the national coordinator for International Walk to School Day in the US, provides a variety of resources to assist in gaining media coverage for an event such as state-specific media lists (downloadable from the Walk to School website), template press releases, media advisories, talking points and much more. Click here to register and receive all these media resources for free!
The Safe Routes to School National Partnership is always looking for stories and photos from events like Walk and Bike to School Day. Bring your camera and a stack of photo waivers to get signed as you take the pictures. This would really help us to show the popularity and excitement associated with Safe Routes to School. If you take photos at your local event, please send photos and waivers to Brooke Driesse.
For more information on International Walk to School Day, visit the International Walk to School Day website.
7. SRTS National Partnership’s State Network Project Update
Exciting and Challenging Opportunities for the Networks
The 10 Safe Routes to School State Networks began their work in May by researching and rating eight policy issues, and most networks have added new policies thanks to their diverse member organizations and individuals who regularly bring new ideas and opportunities to the table. Below are just a few examples.
In Illinois, Washington D.C. and Kentucky, network members have discovered the need to apply their expertise to newly developing state bicycle and pedestrian safety education policies and programs, to ensure that students receive the highest quality information. In Louisiana, the network will focus on getting Safe Routes to School principles incorporated into rebuilding efforts in New Orleans. In New York and Illinois, there may be opportunities to decrease expensive ’hazard’ busing less than a mile from schools that have dangerous street crossings, and instead to fix the hazards through Safe Routes to School solutions, saving money and increasing walking and biking to school. In California, one focus for the network is providing detailed input to the California Department of Education which is updating its school siting policies.
For more information, or to join a SRTS State Network go to our website and contact your state organizer.
8. New York SRTS Program: Building Coalitions and Making Headlines
New York Governor Spitzer announced the launch of state SRTS initiative
New York is one of the ten jurisdictions participating in the SRTS National Partnership State Network Project. Justin Booth, the State Organizer from Be Active New York State, has been busy with outreach for SRTS support and State Network membership. The most recent statewide groups that have joined the network include a broad array of representation from the American Cancer Society to the New York State School Board Association.
On August 31st, the New York State Network held a press conference with State Senator Antoine M. Thompson to encourage schools to participate in Walk and Bike to School Day events, and to request for the New York SRTS program to give funding assistance to schools. Safe Routes to School was
subsequently covered in The New York Times Health Section.
In addition, a week after the press conference, New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer announced the launch of New York’s SRTS initiative, which will provide $32 million for SRTS programs statewide. Within the Governor’s press release an aggressive timeframe was identified. The New York State Department of Transportation will be making the SRTS program application and guidebook available to all municipalities in the state and will conduct regional information sessions. Applications will be submitted by early 2008 with the first projects in the Empire State being selected by Summer 2008.
For more information on the New York SRTS program, please contact SRTS Department of Transportation Coordinator Dwight Cunningham or the SRTSNP State Organizer, Justin Booth.
9. New Hampshire Creatively Tackles SRTS Issues Throughout the State
Communities have applied for more than $860,000 in grant funds
Communities throughout New Hampshire proposed a wide variety of programs in the first round of applications for federal SRTS funding.
Students from 35 schools in 12 cities and towns will benefit from projects ranging from bicycle safety education to sidewalk construction and repairs. A preliminary analysis of the applications indicates that communities have applied for more than $181,000 in non-infrastructure funds and for more than $645,000 for infrastructure projects.
Participants in the state’s SRTS program are at various stages of planning and implementation of local projects. In Nashua, for example, applicants are seeking funding for developing comprehensive travel plans. Another Nashua school is ready to move ahead with infrastructure projects including bike racks and intersection improvements.
Schools in Andover, Concord, Gorham and Hopkinton want to encourage more walking and bicycling by constructing on-campus sidewalks to separate young pedestrians and cyclists from motorists and school buses. In other towns with minimal sidewalk networks, local task forces are looking for ways to use off-road trail systems to link schools to nearby neighborhoods.
“SRTS is consistent with the New Hampshire tradition of finding local solutions to local challenges,” said John W. Corrigan, the state SRTS coordinator. “I am very impressed with the creativity shown by our community leaders.”
For more information on the New Hampshire SRTS program, please contact SRTS Department of Transportation Coordinator John Corrigan or visit the New Hampshire SRTS website.
10. SRTS News Throughout the Country
Local and state SRTS program news links
Safe Routes to School news around the country keeps growing! Updated regularly, see our new SRTS in the News media center for the latest in local, state, and national SRTS news.
Help Grow the Partnership!
Joining the Partnership is free. Please encourage other organizations, schools, businesses, and government agencies to join the Safe Routes to School National Partnership.
Funding for the Safe Routes to School National Partnership has been generously provided by the Bikes Belong Coalition, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Harvest Foundation, and partner affiliates.
For more information, contact:
Deb Hubsmith, Director
Safe Routes to School National Partnership
deb@saferoutespartnership.org
www.saferoutespartnership.org
(415) 454-7430