SRTSNP Federal Goals

Federal Safe Routes to School Goals for SAFETEA-LU
Adopted at the SRTS National Partnership’s Annual Meeting
September 8, 2006, Madison, Wisconsin
Setting goals for Safe Routes to School is a complicated process, as it involves assessing how federal, state, and local initiatives can complement each other to lead to national changes. As such, throughout the next year, the SRTS National Partnership plans to undertake a detailed analysis of long-term goals for SRTS.

In the fall of 2006, the SRTS National Partnership adopted goals that specifically relate to the federal SRTS program, as approved in SAFETEA-LU, section 1404. We will now work to detail strategies for achieving these goals. Additional funding for our planned SRTS State Network project will be essential for having the resources to achieve these goals.

Goal 1: Each state will have hired its full time SRTS Coordinator by December 31, 2006.

Goal 1 Note: Section 1404 of SAFETEA-LU stipulates that each state must hire a full-time Coordinator. A memo sent to FHWA Division Administrators on September 26, 2005, asked for all of these Coordinators to be in place by December 31, 2005, but as of August 31, 2006, there are still 11 states that have not hired their permanent Coordinators.

Goal 1 Measurement: This will be measured through the National Center for SRTS list of SRTS coordinators.
Goal 2: The full $612 million allocated for SRTS from SAFETEA-LU will be obligated by September 30, 2009.

Goal 2 Note: Each state that has released a call for applications for SRTS funding has received an excess of applications over the amount of funds available. If each state puts its funding out to bid in a timely manner, there should be no reason that all of the SRTS funds would not be obligated by September 30, 2009, the last date marking SAFETEA-LU’s time frame.

Goal 2 Measurement: This will be measured through the Federal Highway Administration’s Financial Management Information System (FMIS).

Goal 3: By January 1, 2009, the U.S. Department of Transportation shall have established robust, reliable, consistent, and frequent measures of the use and safety of the non-motorized modes of transportation, including walking and bicycling for school-related travel. The collection and use of this data will be an integral element of state DOT data collection for the USDOT and Congress.

In particular, the USDOT will establish a school travel safety index capable of measuring both the mode share and crash history for school-related travel at the national, state, and local levels. This will enable schools, localities, states, and the federal government to measure the impact of Safe Routes to Schools programs on the safety and use of non-motorized modes, and to set targets for improvements in the safety index.

Goal 3 Note: There is no reliable current measure of the safety and use of the non-motorized modes for any trip purpose, including school-related travel. Despite the plethora of information gathered by state DOTs for their own use and for reporting to the USDOT, there is no reliable annual measure of miles traveled or exposure levels for bicycling and walking. Consequently, it is impossible to measure the impact and effectiveness of initiatives such as the Safe Routes to School program. Ironically, by implementing this goal, the Safe Routes to School program may be initially held to a higher standard than other traffic safety and transportation investments. Ultimately, the effectiveness of all transportation investments should include an assessment of their impact on travel safety and the safety and use of non-motorized modes.

Goal 3 Measurement: By January 1, 2009, there will be a national baseline data point on the safety and use of non-motorized travel for school-related trips.

Goal 4: There will be, by September 30, 2009, a national average of a 25% increase in the numbers children walking and bicycling to schools, in communities and at schools that directly benefited from SAFETEA-LU SRTS funds.

Goal 4 Note: According to the 2001 National Household Transportation Survey, only about 15% of children walk and bike to schools in the U.S. With this low percentage, we feel that it is reasonable to expect that schools participating in the federal SRTS program could achieve a national average of a 25% increase in walking and bicycling from baseline figures.

Goal 4 Measurement: This will be measured through the US DOT student survey evaluation tools that are being prepared now. We will rely on this and other measurements reported by local communities to State DOTs. The SRTS National Partnership will also ask the U.S. Department of Transportation to develop better tools for measuring non-motorized data.

Goal 5: Programs to improve bicycle and pedestrian travel to and from schools will receive additional federal funds in all 50 states and the District of Columbia through the federally-mandated but state-drafted Strategic Highway Safety Plans.

Goal 5 Note: Strategic Highway Safety Plans (SHSP) provide a framework for each state’s allocation of safety dollars. The plans are developed to mitigate safety risks, and are data driven. Since an average of 13.5% of traffic fatalities in the United States are bicyclists and pedestrians, all states should include funding in their SHSP for non-motorized programs.

Goal 5 Measurement: This will be measured through consulting the state’s SHSP documents and implementation plans.

Goal 6: The reauthorization of SAFETEA-LU will result in an annual allocation of $600 million for Safe Routes to School.

Goal 6 Note: Several State DOTs have already seen five times the amount of funding requested from grant applications with relation to available funds. Program needs will continue to grow as news about SRTS spreads, and as communities document their needs.

Goal 6 Measurement: This will be measured through the successor bill of SAFETEA-LU.