Safe Routes to School E-News
Issue #162: September 2019
Safe Routes Partnership E-News is a monthly email newsletter published by the Safe Routes Partnership. We are also on Facebook and Twitter. Join us!
- Get Ready for Walk to School Day on October 2!
- Flash SALE! Early Bird Rates Are Back for a Limited Time Only
- DC Students Learn Traffic Safety Through Performance Art and Storytelling
- Don’t Miss These Two Upcoming Free Webinars
- Supporting Walking as Part of the Workday
- Evaluation in Safe Routes to Parks
- Thinking Bigger than Transportation in Oregon
- Green Your Commute with Safe Routes to School
- Join PeopleForBikes
1. Get Ready for Walk to School Day on October 2!
When kids walk to school, they improve their health, gain independence and confidence, and arrive at school ready to learn. A Walk to School Day event is a simple starting place for getting students started safely walking to school, and introducing schools, families, and community groups to Safe Routes to School. Thousands of schools across the country are celebrating Walk to School Day on October 2 – is your school part of the movement?
Why host a Walk to School Day event?
- If you don’t have many existing efforts to encourage students to walk to school, Walk to School Day is a fun and easy way to explore interest, build enthusiasm, and get started.
- If your school or community has a thriving Safe Routes to School program, Walk to School Day is a great energizing event, letting you connect your efforts with those of other students around the state, country, and world.
2. Flash SALE! Early Bird Rates Are Back for a Limited Time Only
Want to find out what’s next for Safe Routes to School and active transportation? Don’t miss out on this opportunity to join hundreds of advocates and practitioners at the 2019 Safe Routes to School National Conference, November 12-14. Spend three days in Tampa with leaders working to advance Safe Routes and create healthy, equitable communities. You’ll go home with new strategies and techniques to share to continue the movement. Browse the full program online and register today!
3. DC Students Learn Traffic Safety Through Performance Art and Storytelling
Meet Sweeetz LaBamba, executive director of Seasoned Settlers, who shares her thoughts on public safety as a collective responsibility, the power of arts engagement, and how a career in clowning led her to become one of the District’s most dynamic traffic safety advocates.
4. Don’t Miss These Two Upcoming Free Webinars
September 5: Building Our Future: Engaging and Empowering Youth in Vision Zero
Join this free webinar hosted by Safe Routes Partnership and Vision Zero Network to learn how to engage and empower youth in Vision Zero initiatives. Panelists with share their experiences building effective partnerships between schools and community organizations to create youth-centered safety programs. Learn how a Los Angeles organization is inspiring a life-long love of cycling in young people via P.E. Bicycling Classes. Discover the fun world of traffic gardens, also known as safety towns, and how they are transforming bike education around the DC Metro region. Celebrate youth entrepreneurs who are using fashion and design to advance safe transportation in their community.
September 10: A Look at the 2019 Safe Routes to School Program Census
We kicked off the Safe Routes to School program census in early 2019 with the goal of identifying as many Safe Routes to School programs in the United States (and beyond!) as possible. Since then we’ve heard from hundreds of Safe Routes to School programs around the country! On this webinar, we’ll summarize what we’ve learned – from how local programs are configured to what crucial resources they rely on and how best practices are being implemented. We’ll also take a deeper dive into one state – Michigan – and hear how their state Safe Routes to School program is supporting success in local communities.
5. Supporting Walking as Part of the Workday
When the Healthy Monadnock program in Cheshire County, New Hampshire decided to promote walking as a key strategy for creating heathier workplaces, the Safe Routes Partnership was there to help. We developed guides and info sheets for small businesses to expand their worksite wellness activities to include on employee walking programs. Our resources included a Guide to Creating a Walking Route Map with step-by-step instructions for creating walking route maps using free online tools, info sheets covering Ideas for Incorporating Walking Into the Workday and Walking Meetings: What Are They and How Do We Use Them?, and a Walkability Assessment Checklist. The Safe Routes Partnership’s Consulting Services team can help you encourage walking and physical activity in the workday and in daily living.
6. Evaluation in Safe Routes to Parks
Evaluation is a critical step to help programs assess the impact and effectiveness of your efforts to improve safe and equitable access to parks. The information gathered can be used to inform program planning, make continuous program improvements, show impact, make the case to local governments and funders for future investments, and generate further interest in advancing Safe Routes to Parks. This fact sheet outlines the necessary steps and provide tips for using evaluation to improve park access in your community.
7. Thinking Bigger than Transportation in Oregon
Our Oregon staff have been working with partners throughout the state to support a variety of legislative priorities. When we consider what makes a community safe, healthy, and equitable, we feel compelled to work on issues like housing, air pollution, and climate in addition to transportation. Take a look at our Oregon legislative session recap for news on a new ban on single-family zoning, clean diesel legislation, and so-far unsuccessful efforts on creating a statewide policy on autonomous vehicles and to give localities the authority to reduce speed limits.
8. Green Your Commute with Safe Routes to School
Back to school season is the best time to find ways to #GreenYourCommute! Get inspired by ideas in our guest blog post with Every Body Walk.
9. Join PeopleForBikes
PeopleForBikes is working to make bike riding safer, easier and more accessible. Add your name and support better bicycling where you live!