Safe Routes to School
At SVBC, we are committed to helping raise healthy and active children. Through our Safe Routes to School programs, we prepare children with the safety knowledge they need to stay healthy and active by bicycling and walking to school.
Not long ago, half of all children got to school by biking or walking. Today, just 15 percent of school children bike or walk to school. An international movement in over 40 countries and in all 50 states has been underway to reverse this recent trend by aiming to promote more biking and walking through increased safety, awareness, and education.
Our programs use the following components to promote more walking and bicycling:
The Four E’s:
Education – Classroom and outdoor instruction that teach students safe walking and biking skills to use on their way to and from school.
Encouragement – Keep participants engaged through events, contests and initiatives that encourage students and parents to walk and bike to school more often.
Engineering – Help identify barriers and solve problems in the built environment to make biking and walking easier.
Evaluation – Measure and monitor progress and success of programs and activities.
Programs
SVBC reaches out to provide support and expertise to schools and agencies that want to implement Safe Routes to School programs in Silicon Valley and the Peninsula. In Santa Clara County, we are a member of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Work Group for the Traffic Safe Communities Network of Santa Clara County Public Health.
We would like to thank Specialized Bicycles for supporting our youth education and Safe Routes to School programs.