Request for Proposals: Regional Safe Routes to School Workshop Locations Wanted

 

Safe Routes to school is a world wide movement focused on a goal to increase walking and biking for physical and environmental health benefits and improve unsafe walk & bike conditions along routes to school. The program is built on the five E's, Education, Encouragement, Engineering, Enforcement, and Evaluation.

 

The Coalition's Safe Routes to School Program will do one workshop in each of the six Department of Transportation districts. The workshop is highly beneficial for communities who want to improve safety on routes to school and increase numbers of walkers and bikers. It will include a picture-rich presentation regarding the five E's, a hands-on session for generating solutions to problems unique to the school/community, and create an action plan for a local Safe Routes to School task force.

 

For a community to be selected as a host for the Regional Safe Routes to School Workshop, they should have completed the National Center's Travel Tally form. The form is a easy-to-use tool for teachers to hand count the different ways students are transported to school. The tally form and instructions can be found at the NationalCenter for Safe Routes to School's website under the resources section, www.saferoutesinfo.org.

 

Host communities who will apply are recommended to assemble a Safe Routes to School task force prior to workshop. Members of the Safe Routes to School task force can include, but are not limited to, local pedestrian and bicycle advocates, school administrators, law enforcement, city council members, local traffic engineers, and PTO/A representatives.

 

Host community should anticipate type and number of possible attendees for workshop. Host should provide a venue to accommodate the number and type of attendees. The venue will need a screen or white blank wall for presentation materials to be projected on and outlets for our projector and computer.

 

There is an option to do a walk-about and observation of school grounds and a school dismissal. If this interests your community, prior to proposal submission, contact the school principal to obtain permission for the observation and walk-about activities.

 

The deadline for proposal submission has been extended to Friday, October 29, 2010. Submit proposals by electronically at the Iowa Bicycle Coalition's Safe Routes to School Website, www.iowasaferoutes.org or send them by email to Jayne McGuire, Safe Routes to School Program Director, at Jayne@iowabicyclecoalition.org.