Establish a "Safe Routes to School" program
Action
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 1969 and 2001, the number of schoolchildren who walked or bicycled to school declined from 48 percent to 16 percent. The decline contributes to traffic congestion and poor air quality around schools. A growing body of evidence has shown that children who lead sedentary lifestyles are at risk for such health problems as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Is it any wonder that childhood obesity rates are increasing when we make it more difficult for kids to walk or bike to school?
The Department of Education should work together with the state transportation and health agencies to develop an effective "Safe Routes to School" program. Safe Routes to School programs provide funding to help states and communities assess bike and pedestrian conditions around schools, and then facilitate the infrastructure and program changes needed to make the routes safer.
Sprawling land-use patterns can make it difficult to implement Safe Routes to School many communities (see Policy #3, Revise school construction funding formulas, in this section). In 2008, however, 29 states already had a Safe Routes to School program.
Process
Most Safe Routes to School programs are funded through a combination of federal, state and local sources. Funding is typically necessary for the assessment, planning, and construction of Safe Routes to School infrastructure as well as for programming, including awareness-raising events and pilot walks. Federal funding, mostly through transportation appropriations (TEA-21 and SAFETEA-LU) is available to pay for infrastructure. Some government funds can be used to cover the programmatic costs as well.
According to the Federal Highway Administration, funding levels for Safe Routes to School programs began at $54 million in FY 2005 and could increase to $183 million by FY 2009. Each state is eligible to receive at least $1 million. To receive federal funding, states are required to have a Safe Routes to School coordinator to manage the program.
Examples
- Colorado's Safe Routes to School Program
The Colorado Department of Transportation administers the state's Safe Routes to School program. Federal funds are awarded through a statewide competitive process. The money is then distributed according to the geographic distribution of the K-8 student population. Between 10 and 30 percent of the funds ($1.6 million in 2008) is spent on programming. The remaining funds support infrastructure projects as well as a full-time Safe Routes Coordinator at the Colorado Department of Transportation.
— Colorado Safe Routes to School
