Safe Routes to School E-News
Issue #123: May 2016
Safe Routes to School E-News is a monthly email newsletter published by the Safe Routes Partnership (Safe Routes Partnership). Our mission is to advance safe walking and bicycling to and from schools, and in daily life, to improve the health and well-being of America’s children and to foster the creation of livable, sustainable communities.
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- Happy Bike to School Day!
- The Latest from Capitol Hill
- Next #MoveEquity Tweetchat is May 18
- End Street Harassment to Get More Kids Biking and Walking
- Register for our Family Biking Webinar
- Confessions of a Tokenized Advocate
- Join the National Bike Challenge
- Celebrating Bike to School Day? Your School Could Win Awards!
- Support the Safe Routes Partnership and Save Money
- News from the Field
- Highlighted Blogs
Share your photos and stories at #BiketoSchoolDay
2. The Latest from Capitol Hill
Tell USDOT That Transportation is about More than Just Cars!
What the US Department of Transportation chooses to measure impacts which transportation projects get built in your state and community—and whether you are able to walk or bike to school and other destinations and feel safe doing so. Unfortunately, USDOT has just proposed that states and cities measure the performance of their transportation system only through the speed of cars and trucks and traffic delays—completely ignoring people who walk, bike, and take transit.
If this proposal is allowed to stand, it will mean that states and cities will have to prioritize transportation projects that speed up traffic—making it more dangerous for people walking and biking, and leaving even less money for sidewalks, crosswalks, bike lanes, and transit accommodations.
Get more information on this new proposed rule in our new federal policy blog. Most importantly, please take a few minutes to lend your voice: submit a comment for the record telling USDOT that people—not just cars—are what should count in transportation!
3. Next #MoveEquity Tweetchat is May 18
oin a Tweetchat on May 18 at 1 p.m. ET during National Physical Fitness and Sports Month to discuss the intersection of health, equity, and physical activity. Share experiences, successes, and challenges, and learn from other individuals and groups working in this space. Join the conversation at #MoveEquity.
4. End Street Harassment to Get More Kids Biking and Walking
There are barriers to safe walking and biking that go beyond infrastructure and traffic. Many youth, particularly the LGBTQ community, youth of color, and girls, face threats, microagressions, and other types of street harassment on the way to and from school. In April, we supported Anti-Street Harassment Week by hosting a Tweetchat with partners to share experiences and discuss solutions to end street harassment on the way to school. Read our blog post on ending street harassment to get more kids walking and biking.
5. Register for our Family Biking Webinar
Let's All Ride Together: Strategies to Get More Families Biking
In honor of Bike Month, this webinar brings three perspectives on how to help families bicycle together. We'll discuss Family Biking Workshops and classes for all stages of family biking, parent/youth summer programming with bike share, and Open Streets events. Register here.
Speakers:
- Nancy Buffum, Family and Schools Program Manager, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition
- Waffiyyah Murray, Safe Routes Philly Coordinator, Philadelphia Bicycle Coalition
- Linda Ginenthal, Programs Manager, Portland Bureau of Transportation
6. Confessions of a Tokenized Advocate
What does it feel like to be the token [insert minority group here] in active transportation advocacy? Safe Routes Partnership staff Keith Benjamin and Mikaela Randolph open up about equity and feeling tokenized in active transportation advocacy – and why it might be necessary.
7. Join the National Bike Challenge
The 2016 National Bike Challenge started May 1, and it's not too late to join in and sign up for free! The Challenge unites tens of thousands of riders across the country who all share a love of riding bikes. You can compete as an individual or sign up your workplace to ride as a group. Join in and compete against your friends and coworkers, reach your personal goals, and be part of the biggest group ride ever.
8. Celebrating Bike to School Day? Your School Could Win Awards!
Celebrating Bike to School Day? If you live in California, Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, SW Washington, Maryland, Virginia, or Washington DC, your Bike to School Day event could help your school win cash awards to support walking and biking programs. Visit the Fire Up Your Feet website for details!
9. Support the Safe Routes Partnership and Save Money
Our partners generously offer discounts on select products with a portion of proceeds benefiting the Safe Routes Partnership.
Check out offers this month from Dero Bike Racks, Fitivities, and Skillastics! All the details are on our website.
The Safe Routes Partnership receives numerous questions on the cost of infrastructure improvements for Safe Routes to School. As unsatisfactory as the answer might be, it is understood that the costs vary substantially from location to location. In the midst of making the case for increased funding for Safe Routes to School in the Portland Metropolitan region, Kari Schlosshauer, Pacific Northwest regional policy manager, reached out to schools and community partners within the region to better understand how cost are determined. Read about her initial findings here.
Highlights from the Safe Routes to School National Conference(Safe Routes Partnership)
Report: Improving Pedestrian Safety Through Walkable Campus Design (WalkBoston)