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Oklahoma

Oklahoma SRTS State Network
Oklahoma is one of ten jurisdictions participating in the SRTS National Partnership Network Project. This initiative creates state networks that bring together advocacy groups, government agencies, and other leaders.

Oklahoma SRTS Program
Managed by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT), Oklahoma’s federally funded SRTS program is the source for state coordinator contact details, federal SRTS funding amounts, SRTS applications and guidelines, and state SRTS program information.

Success Stories & Best Practices

Oklahoma Partner Affiliates
Find out which organizations in your state have pledged their support as partner affiliates of the Safe Routes to School National Partnership.

Oklahoma SRTS State Network
Oklahoma is one of the ten jurisdictions participating in the SRTS National Partnership State Network Project. The SRTS State Network Organizer works for their sponsoring organization, which is under contract with the SRTS National Partnership.

Oklahoma State Network Organizer
Don Norvelle
Oklahoma Bicycling Coalition
(405) 372-3465
don@saferoutespartnership.org
http://okbike.org/

Oklahoma Interim State Network Chair
Peter Kramer
Oklahoma Bicycling Coalition
http://okbike.org/

Oklahoma State Network Partners
American Heart Association
Association of Central Oklahoma Governments
City of Lawton, OK
Council for Educational Facility Planners International
Eagle Ridge Institute
Edmond PD
Indian Nation Council of Government
Norman Bike Committee
Oklahoma Bicycling Coalition
Oklahoma City Planning Department
Oklahoma Department of Education
Oklahoma Department of Transportation
Oklahoma Fit Kids
Oklahoma Department of Health Injury Prevention
Oklahoma Department of Health Physical Activity and Nutrition Program
Oklahoma Department of Health Turning Point
Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy
Oklahoma State PTA
Oklahoma State University Seretean Wellness Center
Oklahoma Turning Point Council
Safe Kids OK
Schools for Healthy Lifestyles
Strong and Healthy Oklahoma
Tulsa Mayor's Fitness Challenge

Oklahoma SRTS Program
Oklahoma’s Safe Routes to School program is managed by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT).

Oklahoma DOT SRTS Coordinator
Ernestine Mbroh
(405) 522-3570
embroh@odot.org
http://www.okladot.state.ok.us/srts/

Oklahoma SRTS Federal Funding
Oklahoma’s SRTS funding totals $7,089,250 and includes the following annual apportionments:

Application Guidelines
The first application cycle for SRTS funding ended on June 12, 2008. ODOT received 38 applications requesting a total of $6.5 million in infrastructure projects and $197,000 in non-infrastruture projects. In December 2008, a total of $3 million was awarded for this cycle. The maximum grants were $200,000 for infrastructure and $20,000 for non-infrastructure projects. The second funding cycle began on January 27 with the opening of the Travel Plan portion of the application process.

The Selection Committee met for the first time on June 23. Final project selections are expected to be made in September 2008. In December 2008, the selected projects will be submitted to the Oklahoma Transportation Commission for final approval and applicants will be notified. In February 2009, contracts will be executed and a Notice to Proceed will be issued.

The Oklahoma SRTS State Network Curriculum Action Team is nearing completion of the review of the Texas SuperCyclist curriculum which is being adapted for use in Oklahoma elementary schools. The Action Team hopes to have the document ready in time for the start of the next school year in the fall of 2009. Before it can be used in the schools, the teachers who will be presenting the curriculum must be certified to teach it. It is anticipated that certification classes can be held this summer.

State Advisory Committee
The Oklahoma SRTS Advisory Committee was formed March 19, 2007. The Committee is comprised of representatives from: ODOT Traffic Engineer, ODOT Transportation Enhancement program, FHWA, Highway Safety, Department of Education, the three Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) for the state, the Department of Health, and the Department of Public Safety, and the Safe Routes to School Netowrk Organizer.  The Selection Committee met in Oklahoma City on July 31, 2008 to review the first half of the funding applications. They will complete the review and finalize the selections on September 4, 2008.

State Outreach Programs
During the application period, the ODOT Coordinator conducted numerous workshops to explain the application procedure and assist interested school districts and municipalities with the preparation of their documents. These workshops will resume when the next cycle starts in January 2009. Workshop schedules will be posted at : www.okladot.state.ok.us/srts.

In the meantime, the Network Organizer and the State Coordinator have been invited to make SRTS presentations to the Fit Kids Coalition in September, the OK Department of Education’s Health and Drug Prevention Program in November, and the Oklahoma Elementary School Principals’ Conference in January.

The Network Organizer and State Coordinator gave a 1.5 hour SRTS workshop at the Oklahoma PTA Conference in Tulsa on July 6 and had a display booth, with helpful Safe Routes to school Documents.

A new curriculum subcommittee has been formed to start working on a bike/ped safety curriculum for grades K-2. They will be reviewing existing curricula with an eye towards adapting or adopting rather than originating.

Evaluation Methods
Applicants receiving funding for SRTS will be required to submit evaluation data using the National Center for Safe Routes to School’s Student Arrival and Departure Talley Sheet and Parent Survey.

Success Stories & Best Practices

Lawton Safe Routes to School - Walking School Bus
Lawton Safe Routes to School is currently operating at Howell and Whittier Elementary, and officially kicked off with International Walk to School Day in October 2007.

Lawton SRTS is a subcommittee of a larger community coalition called Lawton Fit Kids. The coalition provides the opportunity to work with many partners such as schools, city officials, local physicians, parents, county health department, local YMCA, Lawton Police Department, and other organizations to maintain the SRTS program. The initial goals were to increase the number of children safely walking and/or biking to school, and to reduce traffic congestion during drop off and pick up times. They have achieved both of these goals. The Walking School Bus (WSB) has helped tremendously with increasing the amount of children walking/biking to school. Parents feel much more at ease about letting their children walk to school since there is adult supervision. Parents are also utilizing the drop off and pick up points. These points are where the children can be dropped off away from the school with an adult and then proceed to school with the WSB. As an extra safety measure they identified safe houses along the routes. Every person residing in the home had a background check. The students are taught that these are "safe" places to go if they feel threatened or bad weather arises. Since the SRTS program began, they have doubled the number of children walking to and from school!

A favorite story from the Lawton WSB is from one morning when the children were walking to school a garbage truck was in the road, followed by car one and car two. Car two decided to pass car one and the garbage truck. Car two didn’t get very far because the garbage man blocked the street yelling at the car “Watch out for our kids, don’t you see them walking!" The kids cheered for the garbage man as he continued to block the road until the students had safely passed.

Lawton SRTS has received $15,000 in funding from STIPDA, which helped establish safe houses, and install signage including walking school bus drop off signs. It also allowed them to provide training, purchase a few incentive items for students, and to establish the Lawton Safe Routes to School website. 

Contact:
C. Janette New
jeanette@health.ok.gov
www.lawtonsaferoutes.org



Legislation and Policies
Senate Bill 399 passed the Oklahoma Senate and House of Representatives and was signed into law by the Governor on April 20, which establishes a revolving fund to be used exclusively for Safe Routes to School funds. While the bill does not have any funding attached to it, the language will establish a process for distributing future Safe Routes to School funding, when it is received. The bill was introduced by Senator Cliff Brannon, Chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee.