Did you walk or bike to school when you were a child?

Thirty years ago, more than 66% of all children walked to school. Today, only 13% of American children walk or bike to school. Many parents cite safety concerns as the main challenge in biking or walking to school.

COAST’s successful program, Safe Routes to School (SR2S), focuses on traffic problems associated with access to schools. SR2S is a popular program spreading across Canada and the US designed to decrease traffic and pollution and improve the health of children and the community. The program promotes walking and biking to school through education and incentives that show how much fun it can be. SR2S also addresses the safety concerns of parents by encouraging greater enforcement of traffic laws, educating the public, and exploring ways to create safer streets.

COAST coordinates the efforts of 20 agency and community partners, including the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition, the PTA Safety Committee, various government and law enforcement agencies, Traffic Solutions and the Diabetes Resource Center. SR2S has developed a school zone safety package, a public awareness program, including two bilingual safety videos, and an education and safety-training program. SR2S also distributes low-cost bicycle helmets (free to low-income children).

Health, Safety, Environment and Community is an SR2S program that integrates health, fitness, traffic relief, environmental awareness and safety under one program. It is an opportunity to work closely with your school, your community and your local government to create a healthy lifestyle for children and a safer and cleaner environment for everyone.

Santa Barbara Programs. Safe Routes to School has received funding from the Santa Barbara Foundation and from private donations and COAST membership dues. Sixteen schools have participated in SR2S activities and we are seeking to expand the number of participating schools.

Getting Your School Started

SR2S is most successful when school based “teams” made up of parents, teachers, administrators and neighbors work together on safety issues. COAST can provide guidance in the formation of a SR2S Team at your school. To help identify interested parents/partners at a school, download the article entitled “Every Child Deserves Safe Routes to School” [Microsoft Word]. (This article can be modified to fit a school’s newsletter or bulletin.)

SR2S Workplan [PDF]. You can use this one-page handout to learn about how “School Teams” carry out the goals of SR2S and how COAST and other partners can help. Share the workplan with others at your school who may be interested in getting involved. Adobe PDF format.

Letter from Principal [Microsoft Word]. To initiate the Safe Routes to School program at your school, we request a letter of support from the school principal. The sample letter is in Microsoft Word format for you to use.

Student Mobility Hand-Counts [Microsoft Word]. These give schools a good indication of how students arrive to school and help us to track changes over time. Teachers simply ask the question, “How did you arrive to school today?” and then record the number of students who walked, biked, carpooled, took the bus or rode alone in their parents car. Ideally these are conducted over one week in the Fall and again in Spring. The Mobility Count form is in Microsoft Word format that you can use to tally results.

Safe Routes Checklist. These surveys are given to children and parents to record challenges along their own route to school. This information provides insight from the “kids-eye view” about what obstacles they encounter on their way to school and helps to prioritize potential access improvements. You can download an English Checklist or a Spanish Checklist version, both in Microsoft Word, and modify it as you require. You can also download an article for your school newsletter entitled “Safety Matters!” [Microsoft Word] to explain and precede distribution of the Checklist.

Walking School Bus Guide [Microsoft Word] Download the Walking School Bus Guide to learn how to set one up in your neighborhood. Parents act as “bus drivers” picking up children at designated spots along the route to school. Kids get some exercise, arrive to school safely and get to know their neighbors! Microsoft Word format.

Also, please feel free to use the many helpful documents posted by local optometrist and Peabody parent Larry Bickford on his website. We thank Larry for making these available.

Event Days

Bike to School Days - May. Event days help to build excitement about walking and biking to school. Participating schools create festive greeting tables, and hand out donated prizes and healthy snacks to children who bike to school on that day. We encourage parents to bike with their kids! Contact us if you would like to host an event at your school and we can help supply you with small prizes for the kids and provide tips for planning.

Walk to School Days - October. International Walk to School Days bring together more than 2.5 million people from 32 countries around the world. The idea is to walk to school together with a purpose - to promote health, safety, physical activity and concern for the environment. To celebrate this event, about 3000 South Coast students walk, bike, or scooter to school! COAST can offer guidance in planning and promoting your event. You may email us at info@coast-santabarbara.org or call us at 875-3562. Download a “Checklist for Organizers” [PDF] to help you with your event planning.

Safety Education

Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Education: Assemblies and Rodeos, and Free and Low-Cost Helmet Distribution / Fitting Events. COAST and the Safe Routes Safety Education Subcommittee have created a pedestrian and bicycle safety assembly and playground rodeo. Law officers and certified instructors sponsored by the Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition team up to teach kids important points about how to stay safe on foot or on bike. COAST can further help schedule Free and Low-Cost Helmet Distribution events. If your school is interested in hosting one or all of these events, please contact COAST at 875-3562 or email ksz@linkline.com or eva@coast-santabarbara.org to schedule. Below are some routinely used forms, articles, and flyers that can be downloaded. Except for the Release Agreement, these forms may be modified by the user.

Bicycle Rodeo Release Agreement Form (available in English and Spanish) [Microsoft Word]

Bicycle Safety Checklist [Microsoft Word]

Article/Flyer about the Bike Rodeo and Requesting Parent Assistance [Microsoft Word]

Bike Helmet Distribution Flyer [Microsoft Word]

After the safety events, all parents receive Tips for Safe Walking and Bicycling so the safety discussion can continue at home. Download the PDF: English version or Spanish version.

Other Useful Online Resources

Safe Routes to School. This Marin County site provides excellent information about how to start a Safe Routes to School program. Their 9-school pilot program resulted in a 57% increase in children walking and bicycling to school and a 29% decrease in the number of children arriving individually by car. There are forms and lesson plans you can download.

California’s Safe Routes to School. This site, sponsored by the state’s Department of Health Services, is full of resources and ideas. Their goal is to get more children traveling safely to school on foot or bike, with greater frequency.

The City of Santa Barbara’s Pedestrian Master Plan. Chapter 6 of this plan is about Safe Routes to School and contains much useful information, including a Safe Route map for each City of Santa Barbara school.