A recently released report evaluating 10 low-income programs nationwide gave lessons learned that could help other programs get off the ground.
The report, "Safe Routes to School Local School Project: A health evaluation at 10 low-income schools," indicates that there has been positive progress toward achieving many of the Local School Project goals, a program that began in April 2008 that assists Safe Routes programs at 10 schools around the country, including Santa Rosa, Calif.; Belvedere, Ga.; Urbana, Ill.; Lebanon, Ky.; New Orleans, La.; Buffalo, N.Y.; Stillwater, Okla.; Bryan, Texas; Alexandria, Va.; and the District of Columbia.
"The Project and the resulting evaluation is one of the first multi-school SRTS programs and evaluations conducted specifically in low-income communities in the United States," said Robert Ping, state network director for the Safe Routes to School National Partnership. "The report provides insights as to what is needed to launch a successful SRTS program in communities where resources are limited, to evaluate program effectiveness, and to identify complex barriers that can be difficult to address."
The goals of the Local School Project were to:- create and evaluate a school-based SRTS program
- build local capacity to apply for state or federal SRTS funding
- increase safe walking and bicycling to and from the school and in the community
- develop lessons learned to help other practitioners and evaluators with Safe Routes to School, particularly those working in low-income settings.
According to the report, which was performed in collaboration with University of California at Berkeley’s Safe Transportation Research and Education Center and consulting firm PPH Partners, the Local School Project was also successful in increasing parent perception and awareness of walking and bicycling as safe options for their children.
"The Local School Project is one step forward in the beginning of a movement throughout the United States to work with and understand the challenges faced by residents, schools and advocates in diverse, low-income communities in becoming more physically active through the trip to school. We hope that the Project is also just the beginning of a focused emphasis on funding the evaluation of SRTS programs," added Ping.