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Alliance Distributes Safe Routes to Schools Toolkits

Posted: 02/27/2003

Prescott, AZ – February 4, 2003 – Alliance and the Marin County Bicycle Coalition are pleased to announce the release of a new Safe Routes to School Toolkit. The publication is available over the web, or as a free booklet through the Alliance. This distribution is just one component of Alliance’s National Safe Routes to Schools Program which was launched last October with a $20,000 donation from Interbike at their annual trade show in Las Vegas.

The Safe Routes to School Toolkit is a step-by-step guidebook for how to get more children walking and biking to schools safely. Produced by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration free of charge, the Toolkit includes sections on promoting the program, creating safer streets, and integrating curriculum with physical education classes. State and local bicycle advocacy organizations, parents, teachers, school administration and city officials will all find valuable information on how to start and maintain a Safe Routes to School program in their community.

The Toolkit was developed by the Marin County Bicycle Coalition’s (MCBC) Safe Routes to Schools program and is available at their web site: http://www.saferoutestoschools.org. MCBC’s program increased the number of students walking and biking to schools from 21% to 38% over a two-year time-period. The program also decreased private automobile trips from 62% to 38%.

“The day we received the Marin County Bicycle Coalition’s Safe Routes to Schools Toolkit, is the day we truly launched our program. Before the toolkit, it was all guess work. Now we have a proven formula to follow and it’s working!” Johanna Hawley, board member of Prescott Alternative Transportation (Prescott, Arizona)

Safe Routes to Schools is an international movement, which involves the entire community – student, parents, city councils, law enforcement and public works departments. It’s aim is to increase the number of children walking and biking to school, decrease traffic congestion around schools, and to benefit the health and well-being of the students and the community.