Safe Routes to School in the ATP Jeanie Ward-Waller Senior California Policy Manager Active Transportation Program Cycle 2 Caltrans District Workshops Karen Higgins/UC Davis

About the National Partnership We are a nonprofit organization and network of partners nationwide that advance safe walking and bicycling to and from schools, and in daily life, to improve the health and well- being of America's children and to foster the creation of livable, sustainable communities.

TRAVEL PATTERNS 10-14% of morning congestion is caused by school related traffic. 62% of children in CA live within 2 miles of school. 51% of those children are driven to school in a private vehicle. PROGRAM BENEFITS Increases walking and bicycling 20 to 200 percent. Reduces school vehicle trips by more than 8 percent. Why Safe Routes to School?

1. Children more at risk on CA roads fatality/serious injury rate = 27% vs 23% ages 5-15all ages 2. Prevent childhood obesity and chronic disease Severe public health risks associated with early inactivity – important build healthy lifestyles at early age 3. Unique community support of school-based projects

African-American and Latino children, and children from lower-income households in California, are more likely to walk or bicycle to school but are less likely to have safe streets on which to travel. All kids and communities deserve access to safe, healthy streets and opportunities for physical activity.

SRTS History 1999California founded state Safe Routes to School (following success of OTS/CDPH Safe Communities grant) 2000 NHTSA issued $50,000 for a federal SRTS pilot program in Marin County 2005 SAFETEA-LU established federal SRTS in all 50 states (SRTSNP founded to support program) 2007 State SR2S funded long term from SHA 2011 Priority to lower-income schools 2012 MAP-21 gives states control of SRTS funds 2013ATP established % Mode shift to walking and bicycling Up to 49% safety benefit schools benefitting from the program

Funding for SRTS SR2S (State) SRTS (Federal) SRTS- only $21M $24M (min) SRTS eligible $96M $120M *Annual funding levels shown – ATP cycles 1 and 2 included three years of funding

SRTS results in Cycle 1 Statewide & Small Urban/Rural projects $119M = 94 projects all or partially fund SRTS $23M = 53 projects include SRTS non-infrastructure program components MPO projects $42M = 52 projects all or partially fund SRTS $2.3M = 12 projects include SRTS non-infrastructure program components Safe Routes to School projects, programs, and components of bigger projects compete well!

Partnering with local organizations Why involve community-based organizations and other agencies in project planning? How can they help your Cycle 2 application?

Public engagement/planning Local organizations can help bring stakeholders together Non-profit community-based organizations (CBOs) Community residents School community Law enforcement Public health partners *CBOs may have existing task forces, committees, parent groups with regular meetings that are good forums for getting project input

Demonstrating needs Local organizations can help identify needs for the project Safety needs Survey users or parent concerns about safety in the project area Conduct walk or bike safety audits Health needs Resident health surveys Community-identified priorities through prior planning efforts

Demonstrating use and demand Local organizations can help assess current users and future demand Conduct local walk and bike counts SRTS – student travel tallies and parent surveys National Center for SRTS forms and instructions Community support and interest Existing task forces or committees, parent volunteers Existing wellness or SRTS policy Identify priority destinations and services Identify non-infrastructure components to encourage users

Sustainability Local organizations can help demonstrate long-term commitment to project Partnerships with organizations that have proven successes Letters of support from local task forces, resident groups, committees Train teachers, volunteers, or staff and incorporate programs into curriculums

saferoutescalifornia.org/srts-atp-funding

Jeanie Ward-Waller Contact