Fond du Lac Safe Routes to School
| Background
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The purpose of the Fond du Lac Safe Routes to School (SRTS) plan is to identify barriers and unsafe conditions for children walking and biking to school on the Fond du Lac Reservation. The SRTS program is designed to work with school staff, students, and parents to evaluate the school’s surrounding, educate on the SRTS concept, enforce safety-related policies, and encourage participation. These key areas of evaluation, education, enforcement and encouragement help create a community where students can travel to school on their own and parents and school staff feel comfortable about their safety. Evaluation provides the core element of the SRTS program by evaluating existing conditions around the school on the Reservation, and determining design elements necessary to remedy the problems the evaluation uncovers. The education component includes identifying safe routes, teaching students to look both ways at intersections, and how to handle potentially dangerous situations. Enforcement includes policies that address pedestrian safety issues such as speeding or illegal turning. Encouragement is the final element of the SRTS program. It combines the results of the other areas to improve knowledge, facilities and enforcement to encourage more students to walk or ride safely to school. Fond du Lac is working with the Arrowhead Regional Development Commission to facilitate the entire process. |
| Planning Process
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| A steering committee has been developed to work through the process. There will be four meetings throughout the process. MEETING #1 SUMMARY Steering Committee Meeting #1 was held on April 7th. At this meeting the steering committee discussed the planning process timeline, identified commitments, and identified goals and outcomes of the project. MEETING #2 SUMMARY This meeting was a SRTS Workshop which was held to promote the SRTS program and gain additional input from interested parties. Bob Chauncey and Mark Plotz from the National Center for Bicycling and Walking also presented information on Safe Routes to School and discussed how other communities have been successful in encouraging children to bike and walk. STUDENT/PARENT SURVEYS The next step in the process is to survey students and parents about traveling to school. Surveys have been given to teachers to submit to all students at Fond du Lac School grades K-8. These surveys will be used identify barriers to traveling to school via walking or biking. FINAL DRAFT OF FOND DU LAC - SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL PLAN AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW The draft of the plan is complete and is available for public comment. (CLICK HERE) The plan will be presented to the Fond du Lac Tribal Business Council for adoption at the end of August. Comments should be provided to ARDC on the plan by Monday, August 24th 2009. Email: bhundrieser@ardc.org or call (218) 529-7527. |
| Information
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| Websites: National Center for Bicycling and Walking National Center for Safe Routes to School Minnesota Safe Routes to School |
| Project Contacts
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| If you are interested in providing input or participating in some way, please email us. Bonnie Hundrieser bhundrieser@ardc.org 218-529-7527 c/o ARDC 221 W. First Street Duluth, MN 55802 |