Walking and biking to school mean healthier children and less traffic. DDOT’s Safe Routes to School program helps make it safer, more convenient, and more fun to get to school on foot or by bike. The Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program is funded by the US Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration.

DDOT’s program has four main initiatives:

• Education: Since 2003, DDOT has funded safety education in elementary schools. Kindergarten, first and second graders learn pedestrian safety, while third, fourth and fifth graders learn bicycle skills. Experts from the Washington Area Bicyclist Association give the training at eight schools per year, and at other events. In 2007, they trained over 3000 DC children.
• Enforcement: SRTS funds pay for extra traffic enforcement in school zones with help from our partners at the Metropolitan Police Department.
• Sidewalks: There are missing sidewalks near schools throughout the District, making it difficult to walk to school. DDOT is spending $1.5 million over 2 years to install sidewalks in schools zones.
• Pilot Schools: The most ambitious component of DDOT’s safe routes program is the pilot schools initiative. In 2008, DDOT will select eight schools, one in each ward, to undergo comprehensive safe routes evaluation, and implementation, in all of the areas mentioned above: education, enforcement, engineering and encouragement. DDOT will be accepting applications in March for pilot schools. Involvement of all school community stakeholders will be key to the success of this initiative.

Pilot School News:
2008 Safe Routes to School Recipients

Ward	School	Type
1	Bancroft Elementary School E.L. Haynes Public Charter School	Public Charter
2	Montgomery Elementary School	Public
3	John Eaton Elementary School Ben Murch Elementary School Oyster/Adams Bilingual School (Oyster Campus)	Public Public Public
4	J.G. Whittier Elementary School	Public
5	DC Preparatory Academy	Charter
6	Amidon Elementary School Capitol Hill Cluster School Two Rivers Public Charter School	Public Public Charter
7	KIPP DC-Benning Road Campus	Charter
8	Patterson Elementary School	Public

DDOT, with assistance from consultants, will provide each of the 13 schools with the following:

• Help with the development of a Safe Routes to School Plan that covers each of five E’s. (Education, Encouragement, Enforcement, Engineering, and Evaluation)
• Pedestrian and bicycle safety training in the classroom.
• Increased law enforcement from the Metropolitan Police Department within the school zone.
• Safe Routes to School ideas from other schools around the United States.
• Technical assistance with the implementation of education, enforcement, evaluation and encouragement programs.
• Planning and possible implementation of roadway improvements to increase the safety of children walking and bicycling to school.
• Small prizes to be used as incentives to encourage students to walk and bicycle to school.

More information:
If you would like to learn more about any of these initiatives, or request assistance in your school community, please contact Jennifer Hefferan, Safe Routes to School Coordinator at (202) 671-2227

Links:
The National Center for Safe Routes to School
Federal Highway Administration Safe Routes to School 
International Walk to School in the USA (for Walk to School Day events)

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