Resource Library

What do the US, Mexico, Japan, Italy, Columbia, Australia, Fiji and Nigeria have in common?

If you answered – Walk to School Month – you’re right! At least 42 countries have registered to participate in international promotions to get more kids moving. The official US Walk to School Day is being promoted for Wednesday, October 5, 2011, but we know that schools are organizing events all month long, and many participating schools use the event to propel a cultural and infrastructure shift for how we get around.

As I write this I am sitting on an Amtrak train from Seattle, WA to Portland, OR after leading a technical assistance presentation and workshop for the local CPPW grantees (Communities Putting Prevention to Work, a CDC-funded policy and program effort).

(Note: Pauline Chow and Rye Baerg joined the Safe Routes Partnership in January 2012 as our new regional policy managers in Southern California.)

I am so happy to be in my new position - working to strengthen policies and funding streams to help everyone enjoy a healthier and happier life in the beautiful environment of the San Francisco Bay Area.   

We are excited to announce that the National Center for Safe Routes to School and the Safe Routes to School National Partnership are now seeking proposals from host agencies to organize the 4th Safe Routes to School National Conference in August 2013.

Terms like eco-friendly and going green have become popular buzzwords in today’s environmentally-conscious society. In practically all aspects of our lives, the idea of living green has gained traction… and for good reasons. Eco-friendly practices allow us to take better care of our planet as well as our own health.

Complete Streets are now officially supported by the National Capital Region Transportation Planning Board (TPB), the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the Greater Washington, DC area. At their meeting this week, the TBP adopted a policy in support of Complete Streets

The Safe Routes to School movement and interest in improving the built environment continue to grow. Here are two resources that I’m sure the field will be excited about:

Deja Vu: House Aims to Eliminate Local Funds for Safe Routes
Act Now to Save Safe Routes to School, Bicycling and Walking Funds
 
It’s come down to a fight for local control.  Negotiations on the federal transportation bill are at a critical point and twenty years of gains on bicycling, walking and Safe Routes to School are at risk.
 

One of the exciting aspects of the Safe Routes Partnership’s state network project is the uniqueness of the seven different states. And while this uniqueness is the culture, the people and the geography, one thing is certain, they just can’t get enough of Safe Routes to School!

The August 2009 issue of Parks and Recreation features National Policy & Legal Analysis Network’s (now called ChangeLab Solutions) Joint-Use Agreement resources in an article about using school recreational facilities as community facilities. Mississippi is one of the states that have now bought in and is now on the path to discovering and implementing healthy altern

If you can measure it, you can manage it. 

I often think of this business mantra each day as I step on the scale, track my calories and log every minute and mile of physical activity as I pursue a healthier lifestyle. (And apologies to my Facebook friends who are tiring of my new found apps and the postings to cheer me on!)

It may seem Safe Routes to School slows down in the summer because school is out. But, summer often brings movement on Safe Routes to School projects and awards. Every day I have news alerts flooding my inbox about:

Do you know the key decision-makers in your school district? If you had three minutes to talk with one of them, how would you tell the Safe Routes to School story so that it was clear, coherent, compelling and crisp?

The state network project’s advocacy organizers have been hard at work with one of the project’s most critical tasks – preparing action plans. Each of the seven network states has prepared its own action plan that is being presented to their respective networks for comment and adoption.

In March of 2012, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) announced the selection of 28 schools in 18 localities throughout the Commonwealth to receive infrastructure funding totaling $5.9 million. The projects selected for funding include a variety of treatments to improve walking and bicycling conditions. These include the traditional sidewalk projects as well as a few trails, crosswalks, signage and a school dropoff/pickup area redesigned to more safely accommodate pedestrians.