San Francisco Safe Routes to School Program
Ana Validzic, MPH
SF Department of Public Health
Safe Routes to School Program Need
John Muir Elementary
Fewer kids today walk and bike to school
• 2008: > 15% walking • 1969: < 42% walked
(Report to National Safe Routes Task Force, July 2008)
Resulting in unintended consequences Traffic Injuries Obesity traffic congestion Air quality Crime & violence around school
SRTS programs are part of the solution
Alamo Elementary
Safe Routes to School Program Overview
John Muir Elementary
Goal: to increase walking, biking to/from school • Leading multi-disciplinary team
comprised of SFUSD, City agencies, and nonprofits
• Worked in 15 elementary schools, one in
each supervisorial district for geographic equity
• Will expand to 40 schools starting SY 14-15
Longfellow Elementary School
2013-2014 Program Schools
The FIVE E’s Education Encouragement Engineering Enforcement Evaluation
The Five Es- Education • Sets the foundation for safe
behavior and engages students
• Creates safety awareness • Fosters life-long safety
habits • Engages parents, neighbors
and drivers Key Products: • Classroom lessons on
pedestrian and bicycle safety
Longfellow Elementary Pedestrian Safety Class
The Five Es- Encouragement Increases popularity of
walking and bicycling Is an easy way to start SRTS
programs Emphasizes FUN Key products: Walking school buses and
bike trains Parent and caregiver
outreach Walk and Roll to School Day Bike and Roll to School Week
The Five Es- Enforcement • Increases awareness of
pedestrians and bicyclists • Improves driver behavior • Helps children follow traffic
rules Key Product: • Traffic Enforcement
Geary Boulevard
Jefferson Elementary
19th Avenue & Irving St.
The Five Es- Engineering • Creates safer conditions
for walking and bicycling • Can influence the way
people behave
Key Products: • School Prioritization
System for capital improvement projects
• Walk/Bike Maps • School walk audits
Geary Boulevard
Jefferson Elementary
19th Avenue & Irving St.
Geary Boulevard & Jordan
15th and Capp
Walk audit
The Five Es- Evaluation Collect and analyze
how schoolchildren get to and from school
Collect and analyze
surveys from parents on knowledge and attitudes towards walking and biking
Geary Boulevard
Jefferson Elementary
19th Avenue & Irving St.
Geary Boulevard & Jordan
Accomplishments • Partnered with UCSF Pediatrics to
conduct annual district-wide school commute study
• First study to look at school transportation in SFUSD
• Elementary school data: • Walk/Bike mode share: 25% in 2010;
26% in 2011; 26% in 2012 • 23% of students live within ½ mile of
school, another 19% live within ½-1 mi • Partnered with MTA to establish school
prioritization system based on UCSF school commute results and injury data
• First time MTA has established systematic way to prioritize schools for capital improvements
• MTA now using this system to pursue funding for school infrastructure changes
GW Carver Elementary
Lessons Learned to Improve SRTS • Parent/caregiver outreach is crucial
because they are the decision-makers regarding school commute
• SRTS team will actively recruit parents/caregivers to participate in program at their child’s school
• SRTS team will reach out to families at school events on weekends and at night
• Regular, consistent walking and roll events are essential to meet goal
• School staff unable to lead these events because of liability concerns
• SRTS team will recruit parents/caregivers to lead these events
• SRTS team will provide support and training to these parents/caregivers
Jefferson Elementary
19th Avenue & Irving St.
SRTS Program Elements 2014-2017 Changes to General Program
• Expand to 40 schools
• 35 elementary, 3 middle & 2 high schools
• Provide targeted outreach and community organizing • Hired team of bilingual outreach
workers to recruit parent volunteers • Will recruit and support parent
champions
Jefferson Elementary
19th Avenue & Irving St.
Buena Vista Horace Mann
SRTS Program Elements 2014-2017 Education Deliverables • Shift education in elementary schools
from classrooms to assemblies and after-school programming • Pressures for in-class time have
shifted our focus • Provide SRTS Educators Guide for
teachers to conduct themselves in classroom
• Conduct two assemblies: K-2 grades and 3-5 grades
• Conduct bike rodeos at school events
• Bike clubs for middle school and high schools • Teach youth how to repair bikes, build
bikes and safely ride on city streets • Connect biking and walking to transit
Jefferson Elementary
19th Avenue & Irving St.
GW Carver Elementary
SRTS Program Elements 2014-2017
Encouragement Deliverables • Organize Walk and Roll to School Day and Bike
to School Week • Train and support walking school buses and
bike trains • Organize fun contests and promotional events
at schools
• Provide tailored information to individual schools • Create school transportation toolkits to schools
outlining walking, biking, transit, and carpool options for each school
• Market toolkits at schools in diverse languages
Evaluation Deliverables
• Conduct classroom travel tallies • Distribute and analyze parent surveys
John Muir Elementary
Student on her way to New Traditions
Elementary
Thank you! Ana Validzic SF Dept. of Public Health 30 Van Ness Ave, Suite 2300 San Francisco, CA 94102 (415) 581-2478 [email protected]
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