The oceanfront city of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina – permanent population 27,000 – explodes with tourists and temporary workers from all over the world during the summer. With as many as 450,000 people congregating on the seven-mile stretch of beachfront, restaurants, and shops in any given week in the summer, it’s critical that the town’s transportation system is able to handle the large influx of visitors. Central to the experience of visiting Myrtle Beach is the ability to get out of the car and enjoy the town by foot or by bike.

When Deb Hubsmith founded the Safe Routes Partnership in 2005 – the same year that the first federal Safe Routes to School legislation was passed, authorizing funding to 50 states and the District of Columbia – her vision for the Safe Routes to School movement was much broader than the $612 million in initial funding outlined in the legislation. From the very beginning, Hubsmith believed that Safe Routes to School had the potential to transform our cities and towns into healthy, active communities where all people can walk, bicycle, and be physically active.

After weeks of work, the Senate passed the DRIVE Act today to reauthorize transportation policy and funding, on a vote of 65-34.  However, the House of Representatives has forced the Senate’s hand into accepting a three-month extension of current law.

This guest blog post was written by our research adviser, Christina Galardi.

First, let’s start with a pop quiz to get your brain working - I’ll give the answers at the end.

In May, a series of incomprehensible tragedies happened in the City of Portland and the surrounding region – vehicles hitting, hurting, maiming and killing people walking and riding bicycles. One crash after another.

Today, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) unveiled their new six-year transportation bill.  The DRIVE Act (Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy Act) primarily shores up our existing interstate and road-focused transportation system.  Unsurprisingly given its name, the bill does not adequately address the needs of communities all acr

This guest blog post was written by our research adviser, Christina Galardi.

Back to the basics: even though I’ve completed college-level mathematics courses, this month I returned to elementary school for an important lesson in my 1,2,3’s.