Safe Routes to School

NCTCOG periodically funds SRTS infrastructure projects, such as sidewalks and crosswalks, through Transportation Alternatives calls for projects. Under the 2017 call for projects, $12.2 million was awarded to 22 SRTS projects (click for a list of funded SRTS projects). When completed, these improvements will provide better access to more than 30 elementary and middle schools across the region. Visit the Bicycle-Pedestrian Funding Opportunities web page for more information.

Walk to School Day is an annual event that brings together schools and communities to raise awareness about the importance of traffic safety, and the fun and health benefits of walking. It has become a global event that occurs yearly on the first Wednesday in October. Want to plan ahead for next year's event? Walk to School Day 2020 will be on October 7, 2020!

NCTCOG provides FREE giveaway items to encourage schools to participate in Walk to School Day. Registration for Walk to School Day 2019 is now closed. Please check back next year to register your school for Walk to School Day 2020.

Keep Walking!
Make every day Walk to School Day! Examples of ongoing activities include Walking School Buses (check out this one in Fort Worth!), and Golden Sneaker Programs.

School Curriculum (free)
Go to LookOutTexans.org to download a free School Kit for teaching 3rd - 8th grades about pedestrian and bicycle safety. The School Kits were created with input from North Texas educators, and were designed to support the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) standards for physical and health education.

Additional parent and teacher resources are available for download:

Tips for Safe Bicycling & Walking Behavior

School Zone Safety Tips (Spanish)

NCTCOG has a history of helping local communities plan for SRTS. Below are just a few of the examples.

• Dallas – Ignacio Zaragoza Elementary Safe Routes to School Plan (2017)
• Kennedale – Delaney Elementary and Arthur Intermediate Safe Routes to School Plan (2017)
• ​Fort Worth – Applied Learning Academy Safe Routes to School Plan (2017)
• Fort Worth – Blue Zones City-wide Safe Routes to School Planning – Prioritization Criteria (2015)
• Safe Routes to School Action Plan for Webb Elementary (Arlington) (2019)
• Safe Routes to School Action Plan for Arturo Salazar Elementary, Leila P. Cowart Elementary, and L.V. Stockard Middle School (Dallas) (2019)
• Walking Safety Assessment for Speer Elementary (Arlington) (2019)

2019 Safe Routes to School Regional Training

• Safe Routes to School National Partnership 
• National Center for Safe Routes to School 
• National Walk & Bike to School Day 
• Walking School Bus 
• Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) Safe Routes to School Briefing Sheets 
• SRTS Guide: Steps to Creating a Safe Routes to School Program 

Local Examples

• City of Fort Worth Safe Routes to School Resolution 
• Fort Worth ISD Safe Routes to School Resolution
• Irving ISD Safe Routes to School Program

• The percentage of students that walk or bicycle to school has dropped from a national average of 48 percent in 1969 to just 13 percent in 2009.¹
• Vehicle trips to K-12 schools account for 10 to 14 percent of traffic during the morning commute.¹
• SRTS engineering, education, and encouragement interventions have been shown to decrease pedestrian injury rates by 44 percent, and increase walking and biking rates by 25 percent.^{3, 4}
• If 100 children at one school walked or bicycled instead of being driven every day for one school year, they would keep nearly 35,000 pounds of pollutants out of the air.⁵