The National Center for Safe Routes to School offers this collection of original 1-2 page case studies on SRTS programs and activities from across the United States. The case studies, also referred to as success stories, appear on www.saferoutesinfo.org and are seen by numerous SRTS implementers and others involved in SRTS.
The short answer is we believe an SRTS Program can help. However, please keep in mind that an SRTS program is more than a sidewalk and infrastructure program. For SRTS programs to be most effective they should be comprehensive and include most if not all of the 5 E's (engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement and evaluation). Visit our comprehensive SRTS Guide online for more on each of the E's and to see how they work together.
This toolkit provides the following:
The report discusses the various engineering, enforcement and education strategies used in Safe Routes programs and describes why it is important to use multiple stragegies. The document also provides an inventory of programs by locations throughout the United States.
For information about developing route maps for travel to school, take a look at the School Route Maps and the Tools to Create Them section in our Safe Routes to School Guide.
For a more general tool, you can also start with a walkability checklist.
This video outlines the success of a Safe Routes to School program at Foothill Elementary in Boulder, Colorado. The video was developed by the Colorado Safe Routes to School program within the Colorado Department of Transportation. For more information on the Colorado SRTS program, please visit http://www.dot.state.co.us/BikePed/SafeRoutesToSchool.htm.
There are several possible approaches:
Developing a personal stake in SRTS makes people more likely to invest time, money, and energy. This personal interest and engagement can come about in diverse ways. For example:
