Safe Routes to School Report Aims to Rally State, Local Support:
"A report released this week gives results from 10 pilot projects that offer best practices and lessons learned for communities and schools wishing to tap into federal funds for developing safe biking and walking paths for students, especially in low-income areas with high crime rates."
But first, state departments of transportation must be on board, said Deb Hubsmith, director of the Safe Routes to School National Partnership, which authored the report.
“We need to ensure that state level policies are set up in such a way that they help low-income communities that are most vulnerable to childhood obesity,” she said.
But, while targeting rising rates of childhood obesity remains a key goal, more attention is being turned to keeping children safe from crime on their way to and from school.
The goal of the partnership, which launched in 2005 after the federal Safe Routes to School program was implemented as directed by current surface transportation act, SAFETEA-LU, is to help states to develop action plans and policies and allocate federal and matching state Safe Routes funds for assisting local schools in cite planning and school wellness programs.
Hubsmith added that the report, “Safe Routes to School State Network Project: Final Report, 2007-2009, Making Change Through Partners and Policies,” is designed to help states structure a Safe Routes blueprint that will trickle down to the local level and, in doing so, set a precedence nationwide.
Safe Routes to School National Partnership (SRTSNP).
"A report released this week gives results from 10 pilot projects that offer best practices and lessons learned for communities and schools wishing to tap into federal funds for developing safe biking and walking paths for students, especially in low-income areas with high crime rates."
But first, state departments of transportation must be on board, said Deb Hubsmith, director of the Safe Routes to School National Partnership, which authored the report.
“We need to ensure that state level policies are set up in such a way that they help low-income communities that are most vulnerable to childhood obesity,” she said.
But, while targeting rising rates of childhood obesity remains a key goal, more attention is being turned to keeping children safe from crime on their way to and from school.
The goal of the partnership, which launched in 2005 after the federal Safe Routes to School program was implemented as directed by current surface transportation act, SAFETEA-LU, is to help states to develop action plans and policies and allocate federal and matching state Safe Routes funds for assisting local schools in cite planning and school wellness programs.
Hubsmith added that the report, “Safe Routes to School State Network Project: Final Report, 2007-2009, Making Change Through Partners and Policies,” is designed to help states structure a Safe Routes blueprint that will trickle down to the local level and, in doing so, set a precedence nationwide.
Safe Routes to School National Partnership (SRTSNP).