Bike Loudoun Partners with Safe Routes to School

What is Safe Routes To School (SRTS)? 

Safe Routes to School is a program that promotes and encourages walking and biking to school safely. The program is sustained by local, state, and federal governments, and is successful through the efforts of parents, schools, and community members, like Bike Loudoun.   Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) has two SRTS coordinators that work with schools, parents, teachers, students, PTA’s and other related organizations to promote walking and biking to school, bicycle and pedestrian safety.  We all want to keep our kids safe.  Half of the children struck by cars near schools are hit by parents driving other children to school.*

SRTS Helps by Focusing on: 

1. Evaluation – Monitoring and documenting data; 
2. Engineering – Creating  physical improvements to the infrastructure surrounding schools; 
3. Education – Teaching children about the importance and benefits of safe biking and walking; 
4. Encouragement – Using events and activities to promote walking and bicycling and to generate enthusiasm for the program with students, parents, staff and surrounding community;  
5. Enforcement – Partnering with local law enforcement to ensure that traffic laws are obeyed in the vicinity of schools

Why have SRTS in our school?

Walking and biking to school not only decreases congestion and traffic around schools, it has proven to increase brain functioning and productivity among students, while decreasing obesity rates. Some of the events SRTS sponsors are Walk to School Day, Bike to School Day, and Crossing Guard Appreciation Day. SRTS also supports the practice of regular walking school buses, bike rodeo's, and walk to school day events. Walking one mile to and from school each day is two-thirds of the recommended sixty minutes of physical activity a day. Children who walk to school have higher levels of physical activity throughout the day! 

SRTS Events 

Let’s get started! If your school is interested in SRTS program or activities please email Janice or Valerie for more information.  Contact Valerie Mulhern, valerie.mulhern@lcps.org or Janice Jennings, Janice.Jennings@lcps.org

SRTS has a variety of resources online to help get programs started.

Visit Loudoun County Public Schools SRTS Webpage:

Visit the national website- www.saferoutesinfo.org

Visit the Virginia website- www.virginiadot.org/saferoutes

Visit Walk and Bike to school website to see more about Bike Trains and walking to school   www.walkbiketoschool.org

Check out the mini grant options for your school- win $1000 grants to help fund a school event:   

http://www.virginiadot.org/programs/srsm_quick_start_mini-grant_program.asp  

*Per National SRTS Organization, (citation needed)