Last week, the Surgeon General issued a powerful call to action urging all Americans to champion walking and walkable communities. By now hopefully you have heard this and are already putting efforts in place to align your school, nonprofit organization, or business with this game-changing ask. I was gratified to be present in Washington, DC when Dr. Murthy made the announcement, and at the Safe Routes Partnership we are moving forward without hesitation.
This study of traffic fatalities in a county in California found that pedestrian crashes are 4 times more frequent I poor neighborhoods and age of the population, education, English language fluency, nor population density explained the effect of income level.
This guest blog post was written by our research advisor, Christina Galardi.
In advocating for Safe Routes to School programs in your area, you might face two major questions from school administrators, local planners, or political leaders:
Two rigorous research studies published in the past year provide evidence for the health and economic benefits of Safe Routes to School to support your response.
This map provides examples of the impact of bicycling on business districts, jobs, and household savings across the country.
Snow has been in the news lately, and communities, Safe Routes to School Programs, and walking advocates are stepping up and sharing solutions and tips for students and residents to walk safely in the snow. Personal preparation and community education and engagement are the best solutions to walking during the winter months.
This report presents a school bicycle parking facility assessment tool and describes how to use it. It also presents ideas about how to make improvements to your bicycle parking facilities and shares the results from the original Eugene‐Springfield Safe Routes to School bicycle parking study.
The National Conference is off to a strong start here in Columbus, Ohio.
Look both ways. Wear your helmet. We’ve all heard these maxims about safety, and probably shared them a time or two.
Aside from distance to school, safety is a leading factor for both adults and children in the decision to participate in physical activity and walk or bike to school (Nasar, 2015; Zhou et al., 2009). However, adopting those individual protective behaviors will not provide an easy solution. This blog post will unpack three reasons why the concept of safety, particularly in the context of safe travel to school, can be challenging to conceptualize and achieve.
Inspiring. Enthusiastic. Partnerships. Youth Leadership. Social Justice. Creating a Positive Future. Those are a few words I’d use to describe the mood, energy and intention of the 3rd Safe Routes to School National Conference in Minneapolis.
As the more than 600 participants entered the Minneapolis Convention Center on August 17, the second day of the conference, the room was buzzing with people talking about workshops and connections they made the day before.
Partnerships…
…a good thing to be writing about on Valentine’s Day. I guess you could say I am the Safe Routes Partnership’s resident matchmaker. While I can boast of several marriage outcomes from my partnership recommendations over the years, my role here at the Safe Routes Partnership has yet to involve dating suggestions.
True or False: Physically active children perform better academically than their less active counterparts. TRUE! But you don’t have to take my word for it.
As someone who has been involved with Safe Routes to School for over nine years, it has been very satisfying – let alone exciting – to see the Safe Routes Partnership’s state network project not only thrive, but continue to get generously funded. And being personally involved has only made it that much sweeter. Prior to joining the staff in May 2011, I served on the Safe Routes Partnersh
This morning, in the darkness of dawn, I snuck out to the foothills of Denver for a little inspiration/perspiration on a mountain bike ride with two of my trusted compadres.
Hi, welcome to my blog.
Press Releases:
On Thursday, May 17, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) voted to approve the One Bay Area Grant (OBAG) as part of the overall approval of their Regional Transportation Plan. OBAG provides roughly $800 million over four years to cities and counties in the region for transportation projects.
The Massachusetts Safe Routes to School program has expanded rapidly over the past year and is poised to surpass the 500 partner mark by the end of 2012. Currently, 485+ schools are participating in the program, serving 42 percent of communities throughout the Commonwealth, impacting more than 220,000 children annually.
All Safe Routes to School programs benefit from evaluation. Thoughtful data collection and analysis helps communities to identify issues, appropriate strategies to address those issues, set goals, and determine results. Data collected can further influence funding by providing a fuller picture of community needs and prospective projects.
In our upcoming September webinar, we will delve into tools to support your funding applications and existing programs. The one-hour session will include an overview of Colorado’s EnviroScreen, an interactive environmental justice mapping and health screening tool developed for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE). This dynamic resource enables users to identify areas with current and past environmental inequities, pinpoint areas where disproportionately impacted communities have a greater health burden and/or face more environmental risks and identify geographic areas that meet the definition of disproportionately impacted communities under Colorado law.
Additionally, given the closure of the National Safe Routes to School Data System, we will be discussing new means of recording student travel tallies and parent surveys. This data is a required component for Colorado Safe Routes to School grant applications. All those interested in submitting applications for our upcoming Colorado Safe Routes to grant cycle, join us as we share our suggestions to help you prepare your best submission!
*Note: While this webinar is designed to give an overview of tools available for evaluation within your program, special attention will be given to attendees preparing a Colorado Safe Routes to School FY 25 Application.
Some neighborhoods are more equipped to support active lifestyles than others.
