Celebrate International Walk to School Month. SDOT has launched a Safe Routes to School campaign.
October is International Walk to School Month (IWALK) and SDOT is a proud partner in the Feet First IWALKChallenge, which offers incentives for schools to participate in the walk to school campaign. The Mariner Moose has also joined the IWALKChallenge, and is at the ready to help one lucky school promote pedestrian safety and safe walking in October. Picture the Moose at your school greeting walkers in the morning, walking with a Walking School Bus, and/or promoting safety at a school assembly! Thanks to Safe Kids Washington, any Puget Sound Area school planning an International Walk to School event is eligible to win a visit from the Mariner Moose.
Sign up by this Sunday, September 28th to have your school name placed in a drawing. The winner will be announced on September 30th, and will receive planning assistance from Safe Kids Washington.
To coincide with International Walk to School Month, SDOT has launched a Safe Routes to School (SRTS) outreach campaign to remind everyone to look out for each other and keep kids safe in school zones. By making our streets safer near schools, SDOT aims to encourage more families to start walking and biking to school, reduce congestion near schools, and keep kids safe and fit. Some teachers even say that kids who walk or bike to school arrive more alert and ready to learn, making for a successful school day for everyone.
The outreach campaign provides yard signs along busy streets where children must cross on their way to and from school. They were installed in the school zones at 40 schools throughout the city. The signs are primarily aimed at drivers; to remind them that school is in session; to drive 20 mph; and to keep kids safe. They ask everyone to look out for each other, whether driving, walking or biking.
This is the second year SDOT has undertaken this SRTS awareness campaign and the response to the signs has again been overwhelmingly positive. This year the signs were revised and updated to reflect feedback we heard from the public about last year’s signs; this year they are even more eye-catching and the messages clearer.
For more information about SDOT’s Safe Routes to School program, contact SDOT’s SRTS Coordinator Brian Dougherty email brian.dougherty@seattle.gov.