According to the FDOT 1992
Home-to-School Transportation Study, only
one out of six children in Florida walk or bike to school.
The rest are transported by bus or by private motor vehicle,
often creating severe traffic congestion at school sites
and unsafe conditions for children who are or would want
to walk or bicycle to school. Our modern-day children
have become captives of a car-dominated society, and parents,
out of fear for their children's safety, are compelled
to transport them wherever they want to go. These children
are not only dependent on their parents for transport,
but lack the exercise benefits that walking and riding
bicycles affords. We have the highest level of childhood
cardiovascular disease and obesity ever before in our
nation's history. Parents and children are fearful of
conditions related to both traffic and crime in their
neighborhoods and community.
The Safe Ways to School program was initiated
to beg the question…can we really do anything to
change this picture and give children back the independence
of their own mobility?
The goal is to improve conditions that
affect children walking and bicycling to and from school,
thereby increasing their number. Safe Ways to School is
modeled after the award-winning project, "Safe School
Routes" which originated in the city of Melville,
Australia. Safe School Routes combines traffic calming
techniques with other school initiatives (i.e. Walking
School Bus, Safe House programs) and an education program
to foster a safer environment for children.
The program is now administered under the "Safe Routes to School" Federally Funded Program by the FDOT (Florida Department of Transportation) Safety Office. There is a full-time program director and funding available for both infrastructure (sidewalks, signs, traffic calming devices) and non-infrastructure (education encouragement and enforcement programs).
Components of the Project:
1. Each school forms a School Traffic
Safety Team.
2. A bicycle/pedestrian safety component is written into
the "School Improvement Plan" dealing with safe
routes, a safety committee, and a safety education curriculum.
3. A school-wide travel survey is conducted at the beginning
of the project to assess the various transportation modes
students use to go to and from school.
4. A school site design analysis and a neighborhood site
assessment are conducted to determine the conditions of
street traffic, parent and bus drop-off locations, sidewalks,
crossings, and the overall safety of existing routes to
school.
5. Attitudinal surveys are administered to parents and
students, identifying their concerns.
6. A list of planned improvements are generated and presented
to the appropriate government entity for consideration
and funding using a variety of monetary sources, including
state/federal "safety" dollars and sidewalk
"enhancement" funds.
7. Traffic Safety Training is given to physical education
teachers, school resource officers, and crossing guards.
8. Finally, a Traffic Safety Education curriculum is implemented
for students. Parents are encouraged to participate through
"walking school bus" programs and other "safe"
neighborhood initiatives.
A follow-up travel survey is administered
and an on-going process established to continue to assess
traffic hazards.
The Florida Traffic and Bicycle Safety Education Program
used the information obtained from a two year pilot program
to create a "tool kit" that can be used by schools
throughout the state and nation to create a safer bicycling
and walking environment for children. The tool kit (available
in Florida) includes a student travel survey, a school
site design assessment, a neighborhood site assessment,
parent and student attitudinal surveys, a video, "How
To" manual, clipboard, pen and file folders, all
in a schoolhouse box carrying case.
For more information on how to receive a copy of the Tool
Kit (out-of-state charge $75), please contact::
Pat Pieratte, Safe Routes to School Program Coordinator
FDOT Safety Office
Phone: 1-850-245-1529
Email: pat.pieratte@dot.state.fl.us
